OT:RR:CTF:VS H302703 YAG
Mr. Takashi Kuroki
Prime Evolue Singapore Pte. Ltd.
3 HarbourFront Place
HarbourFront Tower 2, #10-01
Singapore 099254
RE: United States-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (“US-SFTA”); Ethylene Copolymer
Dear Mr. Kuroki,
This is in response to your ruling request, dated December 26, 2018, concerning the eligibility of certain ethylene copolymer for preferential tariff treatment under the United States-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (“US-SFTA”).
FACTS:
Prime Evolue Singapore Pte. Ltd. (“Prime Evolue Singapore”) manufactures ethylene copolymer in Singapore. The ethylene copolymer is classified under subheading 3901.40, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (“HTSUS”), which provides for “Polymers of ethylene, in primary forms: Ethylene-alpha-olefin copolymers, having a specific gravity of less than 0.94.” According to your submission, more than 50 percent (%) of the ethylene copolymer is polymerized from ethylene and hexene in Singapore. Additionally, the ethylene copolymer in question contains less than 50% of a Japanese-origin polyethylene, classified under subheading 3901.10, HTSUS. In support, you submitted a Safety Data Sheet for our consideration; however, this document does not provide any information on originating and non-originating materials of ethylene copolymer, including the exact percentages of polymer content, or the description of the manufacturing processes.
ISSUE:
Does the ethylene copolymer in question qualify for preferential tariff treatment under the United States-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (“US-SFTA”)?
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
The United States-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (“US-SFTA”) was signed on May 6, 2003, and the United States-Singapore Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act (“the Act”) (Public Law 108-78; 117 Stat. 948; 19 U.S.C. § 3805 note) was signed on September 3, 2003. Sections 201 and 202 of the Act authorized the President to proclaim the tariff modifications and provide the rules of origin for preferential tariff treatment concerning goods of Singapore provided for under US-SFTA. Section 202 of the Act specifies the general rules of origin to be used in determining if a good qualifies for preferential tariff treatment under the Agreement. The HTSUS has been amended to include General Note (“GN”) 25, HTSUS, which contains Rules of Origin, definitions, and other provisions to determine whether a good originates under the US-SFTA. Title 19, Code of Federal Regulations (“C.F.R.”) was amended on June 11, 2007, to implement the US-SFTA and the Act. 19 C.F.R. §§ 10.501-10.570. GN 25(b), HTSUS, states as follows:
For the purposes of this note, subject to the provisions of subdivisions (c), (d), (n) and (o) thereof, goods imported into the customs territory of the United States are eligible for treatment as originating goods of a SFTA country under the terms of this note only if they–
(i) were wholly obtained or produced entirely in the territory of Singapore or of the United States, or both;
(ii) are goods that, in their condition, as imported, are enumerated in subdivision (m) of this note and imported from the territory of Singapore; or
(iii) have been transformed in the territory of Singapore or of the United States, or both, so that each non-originating material:
undergoes an applicable change in tariff classification set out in subdivision (o) of this note as a result of production occurring entirely in the territory of Singapore or of the United States, or both; or
(B) if no change in tariff classification is required, the good otherwise satisfies the applicable requirements set forth in such subdivision (o).
Based on the information provided, the ethylene copolymer in question is manufactured in Singapore from originating and non-originating materials. Therefore, GN 25(b)(i)-(ii) does not apply in this case, and we must determine whether the non-originating polyethylene undergoes the requisite tariff shift (or other applicable requirements) prescribed under GN 25(b)(iii), HTSUS. The finished product is classified under 3901.40, HTSUS. The applicable rule outlined in GN 25(o), provides as follows:
Chapter Rule: Any good of chapter 39 that is a product of a chemical reaction, as defined in subdivision (n)(v) of this note, shall be considered to be an originating good if the chemical reaction occurred in the territory of Singapore or of the United States.
A change to headings 3901 through 3915 from any other heading, including another heading within that group, provided that the domestic polymer content is not less than 40 percent by weight of the total polymer content.
According to your submission, the ethylene copolymer contains a Japanese-origin polyethylene, classified under subheading 3901.10, HTSUS. The applicable rule, as stated above, requires either a change to heading 3901, HTSUS, from any other heading, or a change to heading 3901, HTSUS, from another heading within 3901-3915, HTSUS, provided that the domestic polymer content is not less than 40 % by weight of the total polymer content. The applicable rule does not contemplate a tariff shift within the same heading. Therefore, the non-originating polyethylene does not meet the requisite tariff shift requirement, as it is classified under the same heading as the finished product. Accordingly, the ethylene copolymer at issue does not qualify for preferential tariff treatment under the US-SFTA.
HOLDING:
The ethylene copolymer in question does not qualify for the preferential tariff treatment under the US-SFTA.
Please note that 19 C.F.R. § 177.9(b)(1) provides that “[e]ach ruling letter is issued on the assumption that all of the information furnished in connection with the ruling request and incorporated in the ruling letter, either directly, by reference, or by implication, is accurate and complete in every material respect. The application of a ruling letter by a Customs Service field office to the transaction to which it is purported to relate is subject to the verification of the facts incorporated in the ruling letter, a comparison of the transaction described therein to the actual transaction, and the satisfaction of any conditions on which the ruling was based.”
A copy of this ruling letter should be attached to the entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is entered. If the documents have been filed without a copy, this ruling should be brought to the attention of the CBP officer handling the transaction.
Sincerely,
Monika R. Brenner, Chief
Valuation & Special Programs Branch