CLA-2-83:OT:RR:NC:N1:121
Franki Williams
Ever Home LLC
211 River Landing Drive #415
Daniel Island, SC 29492
RE: The eligibility under the Nairobi Protocol of a stainless steel safety grab bar from China
Dear Ms. Williams:
In your letter dated October 18, 2022, you requested a tariff classification ruling.
The merchandise under consideration is described as a Stainless Steel Grab Bar. The grab bar is comprised of stainless steel and features exposed flanges and a knurled center grip. It has a diameter of 1¼ inches, a tube length of 16 inches, a mirror polished finish, and a weight-bearing capacity of 500 pounds. It is designed so there are 1½ inches of space between the wall and the grab bar. You state in your request that this grab bar is designed and manufactured with the intended use of providing safety and stability in the shower/bath for physically handicapped persons and is compliant with ADA standards. You also state that Ever Home LLC provides safety solutions and convenience to individuals requiring assistance with standing, sitting, lying down or stabilization, and that this company specializes in selling safety shower grab bars for the disabled. This model of grab bar is made by a manufacturer that “specializes in safety grab bars that meet ADA compliance” and that also produces “other articles designed for handicapped persons such as stair grab bars, safety hand bars with armrests, and swinging bathroom hand bars for hospitals and hotels.” This grab bar will be sold online to the public and is intended to be used in residential homes, specifically in the bathroom. Mounting screws and wall anchors are included.
The applicable subheading for the stainless steel grab bar will be 8302.41.6080, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for Base metal mountings, fittings and similar articles… Other mountings, fittings, and similar articles, and parts thereof: Suitable for buildings: Other: Of iron or steel, of aluminum or of zinc… Other. The rate of duty will be 3.9 percent ad valorem.
In your submission, you request consideration of a secondary classification for the grab bar under subheading 9817.00.96, HTSUS, which applies to articles and parts of articles specially designed or adapted for the use or benefit of the permanently or chronically physically or mentally handicapped. Chapter 98, Subchapter XVII, U.S. Note 4(a), HTSUS, defines the term “blind or other physically or mentally handicapped persons” as including “any person suffering from a permanent or chronic physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more major life activities, such as caring for one's self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, or working.” Headquarters Ruling Letter 556449, dated May 5, 1992, ruled that 9817.00.96 applied to: “Grabrails which are mounted to walls in and around showers and bath tubs. They are utilized for stabilization when entering or leaving the showers or bath tubs. The individual rails vary in size and composition…” While no definition was given, multiple later rulings have applied that determination to grab bars/rails in bathrooms which have a sufficient gap from the wall to be grasped and which are both capable of sufficiently securing/attaching to a wall and sufficiently strong in themselves that they can easily take the full weight of a typical adult who would otherwise fall. That does, in fact, approximate some of the requirements for grab bars/rails in public water closets under the ADA Accessibility Guidelines, Section 4.26, Handrails, Grab Bars, and Tub and Shower Seats.
On that basis, and from the information you provided, a secondary classification will apply for these stainless steel grab bars in 9817.00.96, HTSUS, as specially designed or adapted for the use or benefit of the permanently or chronically physically or mentally handicapped (except articles for the blind), free of duty (if any) and user fees (if any).
Pursuant to U.S. Note 20 to Subchapter III, Chapter 99, HTSUS, products of China classified under subheading 8302.41.6080, HTSUS, unless specifically excluded, are subject to an additional 25 percent ad valorem rate of duty. However, please note that the additional duties imposed by headings 9903.88.01, 9903.88.02, 9903.88.03, 9903.88.04, and 9903.88.15 do not apply to goods for which entry is properly claimed under a provision of chapter 98 of the HTSUS (except for goods entered under subheadings 9802.00.40, 9802.00.50, and 9802.00.60, and heading 9802.00.80). Accordingly, the merchandise described above is not subject to the additional duties.
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 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 Jennifer Jameson at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division