CLA-2 OT:RR:CTF:TCM H301877 ALS
Mr. Zachary C. Thomas
Port Director
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
19339 28th Avenue, Building D
SeaTac, Washington 98158
Attn: Ms. Veronica McKnight, Import Specialist, Automotive Center of Excellence and Expertise
RE: Application for Further Review Protest No. 3029-16-100024; Tariff classification of HamiltonJet, Inc.’s 521 Transition Steel Platform and 521 Transition Aluminum Platform
Dear Mr. Thomas:
This letter is in reply to an Application for Further Review (“AFR”) of Protest number 3029-16-100024, filed on behalf of HamiltonJet, Inc. (also referred to herein as “Protestant”) on December 13, 2016. The Protest is against U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (“CBP’s”) tariff classification of the above-referenced 521 Transition under subheading 7326.90.85 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (“HTSUS”).
FACTS:
The 521 Transition (also referred to herein as “521T”) is metal platform that is shaped to be welded to the hull of a boat after importation to serve as a support platform for a HamiltonJet, Inc. Waterjet. The Waterjet functions as part of a hydrojet engine. The 521T is made of either cast aluminum or steel. The Waterjet is assembled on top of the 521T after the 521T is welded in place. The 521T has a “water intake duct”, which is a raised and angled opening in the 521T, through which the water is pulled into the Waterjet via the operation of the Waterjet. The dimensions of the 521T are 93” x 40” and it weighs 445 pounds.
The Protestant had entered a number of 521Ts under subheading 8412.90.10, HTSUS, as a part of a hydrojet engine. At liquidation, you classified the merchandise, under subheading 7326.90.85, HTSUS, as other articles of steel or subheading 7116.99.51, HTSUS, as other articles of aluminum.
ISSUE:
Is the 521 Transition, as described above, properly classified under heading 7306 (if made of steel), HTSUS, which provides for “Other articles of iron or steel”, or alternatively under heading 7616 (if made of aluminum), HTSUS, which provides for “Other articles of aluminum”, or heading 8412 (whether made of steel or aluminum), HTSUS, which provides for “Other engines and motors, and parts thereof”?
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
Initially, we note that the Protest was timely filed on December 13, 2016, which is within 180 days of the date of the liquidation of the entry, October 7, 2016. See 19 U.S.C. §1514(c)(3)(B). Additionally, CBP’s classification of the merchandise is a protestable matter under 19 U.S.C. §1514(a)(2). Further Review of Protest No. 3029-16-100024 is properly accorded to the Protestant pursuant to 19 CFR 174.24(b).
Classification under the HTSUS is determined in accordance with the General Rules of Interpretation (“GRI”) and, in the absence of special language or context which otherwise requires, by the Additional U.S. Rules of Interpretation (“ARI”). GRI 1 provides that the classification of goods shall be “determined according to the terms of the headings and any relative section or chapter notes.” In the event that the goods cannot be classified solely on the basis of GRI 1, and if the headings and legal notes do not otherwise require, GRIs 2 through 6 may be applied in order.
The following headings and subheadings of the HTSUS are under consideration in this case:
7306 Other articles of iron or steel:
7306.90 Other:
7306.90.86 Other…
* * *
7616 Other articles of aluminum:
Other:
7616.99 Other:
7616.99.51 Other…
* * *
8412 Other engines and motors, parts thereof:
8412.90 Parts:
8412.90.10 Of hydrojet engines for marine propulsion…
The Explanatory Notes (ENs) to the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System represent the official interpretation of the tariff at the international level. While neither legally binding nor dispositive, the ENs provide a commentary on the scope of each heading of the HTSUS and are generally indicative of the proper interpretation of these headings. See T.D. 89-80, 54 Fed. Reg. 35127, 35128 (August 23, 1989).
The Protestant claims that the 521T should be classified under heading 8412 because it is designed to hold the weight of the Waterjet and to hold it at a particular angle, and because of the presence of the water intake duct to allow water to be pulled into the Waterjet. Thus, the Protestant contends, the 521T is intended solely or principally for use with a hydrojet engine and is therefore a part of such.
The courts have considered the nature of “parts” under the HTSUS and two distinct though not inconsistent tests have resulted. See Bauerhin Techs. Ltd. P’ship. v. United States (“Bauerhin”), 110 F. 3d 774 (Fed. Cir. 1997). The first, articulated in United States v. Willoughby Camera Stores, Inc. (“Willoughby”), 21 C.C.P.A. 322, 324 (1933), requires a determination of whether the imported item is an “integral, constituent, or component part, without which the article to which it is to be joined, could not function as such article.” Bauerhin, 110 F.3d at 778 (quoting Willoughby, 21 C.C.P.A. 322 at 324). The second, set forth in United States v. Pompeo (“Pompeo”), 43 C.C.P.A. 9, 14 (1955), states that an “imported item dedicated solely for use with another article is a ‘part’ of that article within the meaning of the HTSUS.” Id. at 779 (citing Pompeo, 43 C.C.P.A. 9 at 13). Under either line cases, an imported item is not a part if it is “a separate and distinct commercial entity.” See also Pomeroy Collection, Ltd., v. United States, 783 F. Supp. 2d 1257, No. 11-78 (Ct. Int’l Trade 2011).
We have reviewed the documents submitted by the Protestant, which include links to pictures and videos of the Waterjet and 521T as they are being separately installed and of the finished products before and after installation. We find that the Waterjet is a complete article onto itself and does not require the 521T to function as designed, and that the 521T is not an integral or constituent part of the Waterjet. The 521T’s water intake duct is merely a conduit through which the Waterjet pulls water; it serves no operating function and merely serves as a platform for the Waterjet. Given the foregoing, we conclude that the 521T is not a part of an engine of heading 8412, HTSUS, per the above judicial decisions.
Incidentally, to the extent that the 521T is an integral or constituent part of anything, it would be the boat itself, as it is welded to the hull of the boat with the clear intention of being a permanent part of the boat. The HTSUS does not specifically provide for parts of boats, however, only the boats themselves. In particular, Note 1 to Chapter 89 provides the following: “A hull, an unfinished or incomplete vessel, assembled, unassembled or disassembled, or a complete vessel unassembled or disassembled, is to be classified in heading 8906 if it does not have the essential character of a vessel of a particular kind.” While Note 1 provides for incomplete or unassembled vessels, it does not provide for parts of vessels. Given such, we turn our focus to headings 7326 and 7616.
The EN for chapter 73, HTSUS, under which heading 7326 is provided, states that the chapter covers, among other things, in heading 7326 “a group of articles… not falling in other chapters of the Nomenclature, of iron… or steel.” The EN for heading 7616, HTSUS, states that the heading “all articles of aluminum other than those covered by the preceding headings of this Chapter, or by Note 1 to Section XV, or articles specified or included in Chapter 82 or 83, or more specifically covered elsewhere in the Nomenclature.” Whether the 521T is made of steel or aluminum, it is not covered by chapter 84, chapter 89, or any other chapter of the Nomenclature. Therefore, we conclude that the 521T made of steel is properly classified under heading 7326, as an article of steel, and the 521T made of aluminum is properly classified under heading 7616 as an article of aluminum.
HOLDING:
By application of GRI 1, the 521 Transition made of steel is classified under heading 7326, HTSUS, as an article of steel. Specifically, by application of GRI 6, the 521 Transition is properly classified under subheading 7326.90.86 HTSUS, which provides for “Other articles of iron or steel: Other: Other …” The general column one rate of duty, for merchandise classified in this subheading is 2.9%.
By application of GRI 1, the 521 Transition made of aluminum is classified under heading 7616, HTSUS, as an article of aluminum. Specifically, by application of GRI 6, the 521 Transition is properly classified under subheading 7616.99.51, HTSUS, which provides for “Other articles of aluminum: Other: Other: Other…”
Duty rates are provided for your convenience and subject to change. The text of the most recent HTSUS and the accompanying duty rates are provided on the World Wide Web at www.usitc.gov.
You are instructed to DENY the protest.
You are to notify the protestant no later than sixty days from the date of this decision. Sixty days from the date of the decision, the Office of International Trade, Regulations and Rulings, will make the decision available to CBP personnel, and to the
public on the on the Customs Rulings Online Search System (“CROSS”) at https://rulings.cbp.gov/, which can be found on the CBP website at http://www.cbp.gov or other methods of public distribution.
Sincerely,
Craig T. Clark, Director
Commercial and Trade Facilitation Division