OT:RR:CTF:CPMMA H304802 ACA
Ms. Séverine Ducret
Seppic S.A.
127 Chemin de la Poudrerie
Castres 81100
France
Re: Affirmation of NY N304363; Classification of Lipacide C8G
Dear Ms. Ducret:
This is in response to your submission, dated June 27, 2019, in which you request reconsideration of New York Ruling Letter (“NY”) N304363, issued to you on May 28, 2019, which concerns the classification of Lipacide C8G under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (“HTSUS”).
Specifically, CBP classified Lipacide C8G under subheading 2924.19.8000, HTSUSA (“Annotated”), which provides for “Carboxyamide-function compounds; amide-function compounds of carbonic acid: Acyclic amides (including acyclic carbamates) and their derivates; salts thereof: Other: Other.” We have reviewed NY N304363 in its entirety, along with the information in your request, and have determined it to be correct for the reasons set forth below.
Lipacide C8G was described as follows in NY N304363:
The instant product is called Lipacide C8G. You indicate that it is “a complex substance registered under the European chemical regulation as “N-(1-oxooctyl)glycine” (CAS No. 14246-53-8, EC number: 238-122-3). It is also known as Capryloyl glycine. You indicate that it is used as an active agent for the manufacture of cosmetics. You specify that it is an ingredient and not a finished product.
The molecular formula of N-(1-oxooctyl)glycine (CAS No. 14246-53-8, EC number: 238-122-3) is C10H19NO3. In addition, a structural diagram of this molecular formula is provided below.
In your reconsideration request, you dispute classification in subheading 2924.19.8000, HTSUSA, and instead argue that the subject merchandise should be classified in subheading 2924.19.1150, HTSUSA, which provides for “Carboxyamide-function compounds; amide-function compounds of carbonic acid: Acyclic amides (including acyclic carbamates) and their derivates; salts thereof: Other: Amides: Other.” You argue that the chemical structure of Lipacide C8G is an amide rather than an amine or a derivative of an amide. In support of your position, you cite to an analytic report and registration dossier regarding European chemical regulations.
Subheading note 1 to chapter 29 establishes that “[w]ithin any one heading of this chapter, derivatives of a chemical compound…are to be classified in the same subheading as that compound…provided that they are not more specifically covered by any other subheading and there is no residual subheading named “Other” in the series of subheadings concerned.”
While the HTSUS does not define “amide,” EN 29.24, HTSUS provides as follows:
Amides are compounds which contain the following characteristic groups :
(–CONH2)
((–CO)2NH)
((–CO)3N)
Primary amide
Secondary amide
Tertiary amide
The hydrogen of the (–NH2) or (NH) groups may be substituted by alkyl or aryl radicals, in which case the products are N– substituted amides.
In examining the definitions of “amide” and “derivative” for purposes of heading 2924, HTSUS, we look to the decision of the Court of International Trade, as affirmed by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (“CAFC”) in Chemtall Inv. v. United States, 179 F. Supp. 3d 1200 (U.S. Ct. Int’l Trade 2016), aff’d, 878 F.3d 1012 (Fed. Cir. 2017). There, the Court of International Trade first established that “the term ‘derivative’ refers to a compound structurally related to another compound, not solely a compound chemically produced from another compound.” Chemtall, 179 F. Supp. 3d at 1207, aff’d, 878 F.3d at 1019. The Court of International Trade further determined that “the term ‘amides’ refers to compounds with an amide functional group and either hydrogen, alkyl radicals, or aryl radicals attached.” Id. at 1205. The CAFC affirmed this view, noting that “amides are limited to amide functional group compounds in which hydrogen, alkyl, or aryl groups are bonded to the nitrogen atom.” Chemtall, 878 F.3d at 1022. Moreover, “[a]lkyl and aryl radicals both consist solely of hydrogen and carbon.” Chemtall, 179 F. Supp. 3d at 1205 (internal citations omitted).
In the instant matter, Lipacide C8G does not meet the definition of an amide, as stated in Chemtall. As seen in the diagram above, there is an amide on the left of the structure with an alkyl group intact. However, the N-Substitution is not an alkyl group, but a carboxylic acid. CBP’s Laboratories and Scientific Services confirmed the substituents do not meet the definition of an alkyl or aryl radical. The addition of the carboxylic acid to the structure confirms that the subject merchandise is an amide derivative, and therefore, not classifiable in subheading 2924.19.11, HTSUS.
For the foregoing reasons, we hereby affirm NY N304363. Accordingly, the subject Lipacide C8G is classified under subheading 2924.19.8000, HTSUSA, as “Carboxyamide-function compounds; amide-function compounds of carbonic acid: Acyclic amides (including acyclic carbamates) and their derivates; salts thereof: Other: Other.”
Sincerely,
Yuliya A. Gulis, Director
Commercial and Trade Facilitation Division