MAR-2-05 CO:R:C:V 731799 KG
William Silverman
Dow, Lohnes & Albertson
1255 Twenty-third Street
Washington, D.C. 20037-1194
RE: Abbreviation of Venezuela for Country of Origin Marking
Purposes
Dear Mr. Silverman:
This is in response to your letter of September 23, 1988,
requesting a ruling on whether the abbreviations "VZLA" or
"VENZLA" for the country name Venezuela are acceptable for
country of origin marking purposes.
FACTS:
Your client proposes to import steel buttweld fittings from
Venezuela and use the abbreviations "VZLA" or "VENZLA" for the
country name Venezuela.
ISSUE:
Whether the abbreviations "VZLA" or "VENZLA" for the country
name Venezuela are in accordance with 19 U.S.C. 1304.
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
Section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C.
1304), provides that, unless excepted, every article of foreign
origin imported into the U.S. shall be marked in a conspicuous
place as legibly, indelibly, and permanently as the nature of the
article (or container) will permit, in such a manner as to
indicate to the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. the English name
of the country of origin of the article. Congressional intent
in enacting 19 U.S.C. 1304 was "that the ultimate purchaser
should be able to know by an inspection of the marking on the
imported goods the country of which the goods is the product.
The evident purpose is to mark the goods so that at the time of
purchase the ultimate purchaser may, by knowing where the goods
were produced, be able to buy or refuse to buy them, if such
marking should influence his will." United States v.
Friedlaender & Co., 27 C.C.P.A. 297 at 302 (1940).
Part 134, Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 134), implements
the country of origin marking requirements and exceptions of 19
U.S.C. 1304. Section 134.45(b), Customs Regulations (19 CFR
134.45(b)), permits the abbreviation of the name of the country
of origin for marking purposes if the abbreviation unmistakably
indicates the name of the country.
As you are aware, Customs ruled in #727693 (March 29,
1985), that the abbreviation "VENZ" was not an acceptable
abbreviation for Venezuela even though it is the designated
abbreviation used by UNCTAD-GATT. In that ruling, Customs stated
its position on abbreviated country names and Venezuela in
particular. The ruling noted that "the instances in which Customs
has permitted the use of abbreviations instead of the entire name
of the country of origin have been limited. It is our view that
most abbreviations do not 'unmistakably' identify the country of
origin and are therefore unacceptable. The ultimate purchaser
should be able to ascertain the country of origin at a glance
without any guesswork.... We can think of no abbreviation for
Venezuela which would satisfy the statutory and regulatory
requirements."
The argument you raised that only two other countries have
names beginning with the letter "V" is not persuasive. Neither
the letter "V" nor the proposed abbreviations "VZLA" or VENZLA"
readily bring to mind Venezuela without any guesswork by the
ultimate purchaser. These abbreviations are not commonly used to
refer to Venezuela like U.K. is used to refer to the United
Kingdom. The policy underlying the country of origin marking
statute is to facilitate consumer purchasing decisions and to
protect American industry. National Juice Products Association,
et.al. v. United States, 10 CIT 48, 59 n.15, 628 F. Supp. 978,
989 n.15 (1986). It is critical to advancement of this policy
that the consumer understands from glancing at the marking what
country the product is from. Therefore, we decline to liberalize
our policy on this issue and do not find the proposed
abbreviations "VENZLA" and "VZLA" acceptable for country of
origin marking purposes.
HOLDING:
The abbreviations "VENZLA" and "VZLA" do not unmistakably
indicate the country name Venezuela . Inasmuch as the
abbreviations do not comply with 19 U.S.C. 1304 and 19 CFR
134.45(b),they may not be used for country of origin marking.
Sincerely,
Marvin Amernick
Chief, Value, Special Programs
and Admissibility Branch