CLA-2-85:OT:RR:NC:N4:410
Mr. Michael T. Cone
FisherBroyles, LLP
445 Park Avenue Ninth Floor
New York, NY 10022
RE: The tariff classification of the Drinkmaker from China
Dear Mr. Cone:
In your letter dated September 4, 2018, on behalf of your client Bedford Systems LLC d/b/a Drinkworks ("Drinkworks"), you requested a tariff classification ruling.
The product under consideration is the "Drinkmaker", an in-home alcoholic beverage maker. The Drinkmaker is a domestic appliance with a self-contained electric motor. Consumer will insert a pod of liquid syrup containing alcohol into the Drinkmaker; the Drinkmaker will mix the syrup with cold water (and if appropriate carbon dioxide), and the Drinkmaker will dispense the cold alcoholic beverage of the consumer’s choice into a drinking vessel seated on the appliance. The Drinkmaker weighs approximately 20 (twenty) pounds, and will be able to dispense a wide variety of alcoholic beverages including carbonated beer and cider, and uncarbonated mixed drinks.
It is stated that the Drinkmaker is broadly similar in operation to the currently available Keurig single-serving drink makers, except that the Drinkmaker will produce cold alcoholic beverages from syrup pods instead of hot beverages such as coffee or tea. Thus, the consumer will fill the Drinkmaker’s ambient water reservoir with water, select the desired pod, place it in the machine, and close the pod bay door, which contains a puncturing mechanism. After performing these mechanical exercises, the consumer will then push the start button to activate the Drinkmaker’s electrical operations. Upon activation, internal pumps powered by self-contained motors will move the water from the ambient reservoir into the appliance's internal water tank. A solid-state cooling module, i.e., a thermoelectric Peltier device cools the liquid in the internal water tank. Heat produced by the Peltier device will be captured in a heat sink and expelled by an exhaust fan through the exhaust vent at the back of the appliance.
In your request, you proposed that this in-home alcoholic beverage maker should be classified under subheading 8516.79.0000, which provides for other electrothermic appliances of a kind used for domestic purposes. We disagree. While this product uses a Peltier device that does create heat, the “[h]eat produced by the Peltier device will be captured in a heat sink and expelled by an exhaust fan through the exhaust vent at the back of the appliance.” The Peltier device within this appliance serves the chief function of cooling the internal water tank and the heat produced is simply a byproduct.
The Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System Explanatory Notes (ENs) constitute the official interpretation of the Harmonized System at the international level. While neither legally binding nor dispositive, the ENs provide a commentary on the scope of each heading of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) and are generally indicative of the proper interpretation of the headings.
Heading 8516 includes: electric instantaneous or storage water heaters and immersion heaters; electric space heating apparatus and soil heating apparatus; electrothermic hairdressing apparatus (for example, hair dryers, hair curlers, curling tong heaters) and hand dryers; electric smoothing irons; other electrothermic appliances of a kind used for domestic purposes; electric heating resistors, other than those of heading 85.45. All of the products covered under this heading use heat to perform their primary task.
Further, the exemplars listed within the ENs for other electrothermic appliances of a kind used for domestic purposes include, in part: coffee or tea makers; kettles, saucepans, steamers; plate warmers and food warmers; bottle heaters; yogurt and cheese makers; sterilising apparatus for preparing preserves; and non mechanical wash boilers. Again, the heat produced is principal to these devices overall utility. The referenced Keurig appliances were all classified under subheading 8516.71, which provides for domestic electric coffee and tea makers. It is agreed that domestic electric coffee makers are specifically provided for under heading 8516, but this product is not a coffee or tea maker nor is it of a like or kind of any of the listed exemplars.
In the cited Headquarters ruling H257787, dated August 31, 2015, “the CoolCooker™ is not a cooler principally used to refrigerate food. The CoolCooker™ cooks and prepares food for slow cooking.” This further affirms that the use of heat, in this instance to cook food, allows classification within heading 8516. Counter to what you state, the simple production of heat by a product is not sufficient enough for classification under this heading as countless electric articles produce heat as a byproduct and have been classified elsewhere by numerous other rulings. Even the Peltier device, if present in a device principally designed to cool, were classified outside of heading 8516 as per the examples mentioned in this Headquarters ruling. As this drink maker does not use heat for its principal function, it would not be classified within this heading and subheading 8516.79.0000, HTSUS, would not be applicable.
The applicable subheading for the Drinkmaker will be 8509.80.5095, HTSUS, which provides for electromechanical domestic appliances, with self-contained electric motor, other appliances, other. The rate of duty will be 4.2 percent ad valorem.
Duty rates are provided for your convenience and are subject to change. The text of the most recent HTSUS and the accompanying duty rates are provided on World Wide Web at https://hts.usitc.gov/current.
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. 177).
A copy of the ruling or the control number indicated above should be provided with the entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is imported. If you have any questions regarding the ruling, contact National Import Specialist Hope Abada at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division