CLA-2 RR:CTF:TCM H095041 MG
Port Director
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Chief, Trade Operations Branch D
Building 77
JFK Int’l Airport
Jamaica, New York 11430
RE: Application for Further Review of Protest 4701-09-100938; Classification of ladies bags
Dear Port Director:
This is in reply to your correspondence, dated January 28, 2010, forwarding Application for Further Review of Protest (AFR) 4701-09-100938, timely filed by Grunfeld, Desiderio, Lebowitz, Silverman & Klestadt LLP, on behalf of Dooney & Bourke (Protestant). The protest concerns the classification of three ladies bags, identified as style nos. 491, 492 and 724, under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA).
In reaching our decision, we have taken into consideration arguments made by counsel in the memorandum in support of protest and application for further review as well as a teleconference held with counsel, on September 28, 2010. Product samples and specifications were submitted for our review. Per counsel’s request, the samples will be returned under a separate cover.
FACTS: The merchandise at issue consists of the following ladies bags:
Style No. 492 (Medium Cindy Tote)
Style No. 492 is constructed of a plastic exterior and feature leather carrying straps, an interior textile lining, an interior zipped pocket, a phone pocket, two snap closures and an additional fold-over strap and buckle closure. Style No. 492 measures approximately 11.5 inches in height, 14 inches in length, and 6.5 inches in width.
Style No. 724 (East/West Slouch)
Style No. 724 is constructed of a plastic exterior and features an adjustable carrying strap, an interior textile lining, an interior zipped pocket, a cell phone pocket, and a key ring. The items contained within the handbag are secured by a zippered closure. Style No. 724 measures approximately 5.5 inches in height, 11.75 inches in length, and 3.75 inches in width.
This Protest concerns three entries. Protestant entered the merchandise on various dates, between October 20, 2008, and October 27, 2008, under subheading 4202.22.1500, HTSUSA, which provides for “Handbags, whether or not with shoulder strap, including those without handle: With outer surface of sheeting of plastic or of textile materials: With outer surface of sheeting of plastic.”
CBP liquidated the entries between June 12, 2009 and September 11, under subheading 4202.92.4500, HTSUSA, which provides for "Trunks, suitcases, vanity cases, attache cases, briefcases, school satchels, spectacle cases, binocular cases, camera cases, musical instrument cases, gun cases, holsters and similar containers; traveling bags, insulated food or beverage bags, toiletry bags, knapsacks and backpacks, handbags, shopping bags, wallets, purses, map cases, cigarette cases, tobacco pouches, tool bags, sports bags, bottle cases, jewelry boxes, powder cases, cutlery cases and similar containers, of leather or of composition leather, of sheeting of plastics, of textile materials, of vulcanized fiber or of paperboard, or wholly or mainly covered with such materials or with paper: Other: With outer surface of sheeting of plastic or of textile materials: Travel, sports and similar bags: Other."
Protestant filed the instant Protest on September 14, 2009. Protestant claims that the ladies bags are properly classified in subheading 4202.22.1500, HTSUSA.
ISSUE:
Whether the ladies bags are classified in subheading 4202.22.1500, HTSUSA, as handbags or in subheading 4202.92.4500, HTSUSA, as travel sports or similar bags.
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
Classification of goods under the HTSUS is governed by the General Rules of Interpretation (GRI). GRI 1 provides that classification shall be determined according to the terms of the headings of the tariff schedule 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, the remaining GRI may then be applied.
The 2008 HTSUSA provisions under consideration are as follows:
4202
Trunks, suitcases, vanity cases, attache cases, briefcases,
school satchels, spectacle cases, binocular cases, camera
cases, musical instrument cases, gun cases, holsters and
similar containers; traveling bags, insulated food or
beverage bags, toiletry bags, knapsacks and backpacks,
handbags, shopping bags, wallets, purses, map cases,
cigarette cases, tobacco pouches, tool bags, sports bags,
bottle cases, jewelry boxes, powder cases, cutlery cases
and similar containers, of leather or of composition leather,
of sheeting of plastics, of textile materials, of vulcanized
fiber or of paperboard, or wholly or mainly covered with
such materials or with paper:
Trunks, suitcases, vanity cases, attache cases,
briefcases, school satchels and similar containers:
4202.22
With outer surface of sheeting of plastic or of textile
materials:
4202.22.1500
With outer surface of sheeting of plastic
4202.92
With outer surface of sheeting of plastic or of textile
materials:
Travel, sports and similar bags:
With outer surface of textile materials:
Of vegetable fibers and not of pile or
tufted construction:
4202.92.4500
Other
* * *
Subheading 4202.91, HTSUSA, provides in part for travel, sports and similar bags. Additional U.S. Note 1 to chapter 42, HTSUSA, states:
For the purposes of heading 4202, the expression "travel, sports and similar bags" means goods, other than those falling in subheadings 4202.11 through 4202.39, of a kind designed for carrying clothing and other personal effects during travel, including backpacks and shopping bags of this heading, but does not include binocular cases, camera cases, musical instrument cases, bottle cases and similar containers.
There is no dispute that the ladies bags are classified in heading 4202, HTSUS. At issue is the applicable six-digit subheading. As such GRI 6 is implicated. It states:
For legal purposes, the classification of goods in the subheading of a heading shall be determined according to the terms of those subheadings and any related subheading notes and, mutatis mutandis, to the above rules, on the understanding that only subheadings at the same level are comparable. For the purposes of this rule, the relative section, chapter and subchapter notes also apply, unless the context otherwise requires.
Subheadings 4202.21 through 4202.29, HTSUSA, provide for handbags. CBP and the courts have recognized several lexicographic sources as providing definitions for the term “handbag,” and have cited to these definitions in numerous rulings. See, e.g., HQ H005625 (November 28, 2007); HQ 960899 (September 24, 1999); and HQ 959062 (January 28, 1997). Some of these definitions include:
Essential Terms of Fashion: A Collection of Definitions, Charlotte M. Calasibetta, Fairchild Publications, 1986: Accessory carried primarily by women and girls to hold such items as money, credit cards, and cosmetics.
The Fashion Dictionary, Mary Brooks Picken, Funk and Wagnalls, 1973: Soft or rigid bag carried in hand or on arm. Size, shape, handle, etc., depend on fashion. Used by women as container for money and pocket-sized accessories.
Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, G & C Merriam Co., 1977: 1. [T]raveling bag; 2. [A] woman's bag held in the hand or hung from a shoulder strap and used for carrying small personal articles and money.
Webster's New World Dictionary, Third College Edition, Simon & Schuster, Inc., 1988: A bag, usually of leather or cloth, held in the hand or hung by a strap from the arm or shoulder and used, by women, to carry money, keys, and personal effects.
Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary: [A] bag held in the hand or hung from a shoulder strap and used for carrying small personal articles and money.
www.Dictionary.com: a bag or box of leather, fabric, plastic, or the like, held in the hand or carried by means of a handle or strap, commonly used by women for holding money, toilet articles, small purchases, etc.
A review of the above-cited definitions of "handbag" reveals that each lexicographic source describes a bag used by women that is designed to carry money, credit cards, keys, and small or pocket-sized personal effects (e.g., a hairbrush, cosmetics, etc.).
CBP has classified bags referred to as "totes" under subheading 4202.22, HTSUS, as handbags. The term "handbags" includes pocket books, purses, shoulder bags, clutch bags, and similar articles customarily carried by women or girls, but does not include luggage, flat goods or shopping bags. Tote bags are those bags that are larger than handbags. They are substantially constructed and designed to contain various items including clothing and personal effects while traveling, and usually have at least one side which exceeds 12 inches in length. See HQ 082271, dated December 1, 1988.
In HQ 950708, dated December 24, 1991, we observed judicial guidance as to the attributes of tote bags and women's handbags. We noted that certain tote bags which had no linings or reinforcements, no pockets, no closures (or only single snap closures), provided little protection for their contents and were unlikely to be used in a manner similar to a woman's handbag. We stated that such tote bags were used as multipurpose bags to carry any number of sundry articles, such as food, books, and/or clothing. Since the bags did not fit the terms of subheadings 4202.11 through 4202.39, HTSUS, but were a type of bag used to carry clothing and other personal effects during travel, they were considered to be travel, sports and similar bags within the meaning of Additional U.S. Note 1 to chapter 42, HTSUSA. See also, HQ H004184, dated July2, 2007, affirming HQ 951113, dated May 19, 1992.
In HQ 955552, dated August 15, 1994, CBP classified a pink lady’s shoulder bag as a handbag under subheading 4202.22, HTSUSA. The bag measured approximately 14 inches by 9½ inches with a tapered gusset two inches wide at the top and four inches wide at the bottom. The bag had two shoulder straps approximately 26 inches in length and was divided into two separate compartments, each with a zipper. The interior of the bag was lined and the bottom and corners were reinforced. We held that the bag was not a multipurpose bag used to carry a number of articles such as food, books, or clothing, and that it was not suitable for travel or shopping. While the bag could conceivably have been employed for some limited use as a sports bag, we stated that the primary purpose of the bag was as a traditional woman's handbag. Its design and construction, notably the shoulder straps, reinforcement, linings, inside zipper pocket, style of compartmentalization and zipper closure were all strongly indicative of a bag which is used normally by women and girls to carry personal items on a daily basis.
In HQ 961849, dated June 5, 1998, CBP classified a women’s "tote" bag under subheading 4202.22, as a handbag. That bag measured approximately 11½ inches by 10 inches by 3 inches. It had an outer surface of 100 percent nylon woven fabric and was lined with woven fabric of man-made fibers. It also had two leather carrying straps. The interior featured a large zippered central compartment which divided the bag’s interior and created three separate, full-sized compartments, two of which were open at the top and without closures.
It also had a smaller zippered pocket within one of the interior sides. In that ruling, we found that the bag was designed, constructed and intended to be used as a woman’s handbag, not as a tote or shopping bag. Again, its dimensions, lining, zippered pockets, and manner of compartmentalization indicated its purpose to contain certain items normally carried in a woman’s handbag, such as money, keys, glasses, etc. Moreover, the bag had insufficient additional capacity for use as a multipurpose carrier of any number of sundry articles (such as food, books, and/or clothing).
In HQ 961358, dated January 20, 1999, CBP classified two styles of bags as handbags, although they did not have individual compartments because they were lined, had individual compartments, zippered pockets within the interior, a pocket on the exterior without a closure and a snap closure. In this instance, it was determined that the bags were sufficient to carry keys, a wallet, sunglasses and similar articles generally carried in a woman’s handbag.
With regard Style No. 492 (Medium Cindy Tote) and Style No. 724 (East/West Slouch), the instant ladies bags feature a lined interior with various compartments including a zip pocket, cell phone pocket, and key hook. Neither style is substantially constructed to hold larger items, such as clothing and personal effects, while traveling. Instead, these bags will be used by a woman to carry small personal items on a daily basis. Accordingly, the ladies bags are classified in subheading 4202.22.1500, HTSUSA.
HOLDING:
Pursuant to GRI 1 through application of GRI 6, the subject merchandise, style numbers 492 (Medium Cindy Tote) and Style No. 724 (East/West Slouch), are classified under subheading 4202.22.1500, HTSUSA, which provides for “Handbags, whether or not with shoulder strap, including those without handle: With outer surface of sheeting of plastic or of textile materials: With outer surface of sheeting of plastic.” The rate of duty is 16% ad valorem. Since the rate of duty under the classification indicated above is lower than the liquidated rate, you are instructed to grant the protest in full.
In accordance with Sections IV and VI of the CBP Protest/Petition Processing Handbook (HB 3500-08A, December 2007, pp. 24 and 26), you are to mail this decision, together with the CBP Form 19, to the protestant no later than 60 days from the date of this letter. Any reliquidation of the entry in accordance with the decision must be accomplished prior to mailing the decision. Sixty days from the date of the decision Regulations and Rulings of the Office of International Trade will make the decision available to CBP personnel, and to the public on the CBP Home Page on the World Wide Web at www.cbp.gov, by means of the Freedom of Information Act, and other methods of public distribution.
Sincerely,
Myles B Harmon, Director
Commercial Rulings Division