CLA-2-70:RR:NC:TA:352
Mr. Dan Hirning
Firezat
5173 Waring Road, Suite 158
San Diego, CA 92120
RE: The tariff classification of a plain woven fiberglass fabric coated on one side with aluminum from China.
Dear Mr. Hirning:
In your letter dated March 15, 2007 you requested a classification ruling.
The submitted sample, designated as “Firezat Fire Shield Fabric”, is a plain woven fabric composed of 100% fiberglass. It is manufactured using 430 tex textured fiberglass yarns in both the warp and the filling. Your letter states that the fiber diameter of all the yarns is 9 microns per filament. One side of the fabric has been coated with aluminum. Weighing 580 g/m2, this product will be imported in 152 centimeter widths. The fiberglass represents approximately 60% of the value of this product while the aluminum represents approximately 40% of the value. Your correspondence indicates that this fabric will be manufactured into tarpaulins and marketed to individuals, and government agencies as a protective covering for structures designed to resist ignition of the structures from forest and brush fires. The aluminum coating is designed to reflect radiant heat while the fiberglass is fire resistant. Based on the relative value, function and quantities of the materials that form this composite good, it is the fiberglass which imparts this product with its essential character.
The applicable subheading for the glass fiber woven fabric will be 7019.59.9021, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for glass fibers (including glass wool) and articles thereof (for example, yarn, woven fabrics) other woven fabrics, other, colored, other, weighing more than 215 grams per square meter, with a filament diameter of 7 to 13 microns. The duty rate will be 7 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 http://www.usitc.gov/tata/hts/.
This fabric falls within textile category 622. With the exception of certain products of China, quota/visa requirements are no longer applicable for merchandise which is the product of World Trade Organization (WTO) member countries. At the present time goods produced in China which fall within textile category 622 are subject to both quota restraints and visa requirements. Quota and visa requirements are the result of international agreements that are subject to frequent renegotiations and changes. To obtain the most current information on quota and visa requirements applicable to this merchandise, we suggest you check, close to the time of shipment, the “Textile Status Report for Absolute Quotas” which is available on our web site at www.cbp.gov. For current information regarding possible textile safeguard actions on goods from China and related issues, we refer you to the web site of the Office of Textiles and Apparel of the Department of Commerce at otexa.ita.doc.gov.
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 Alan Tytelman at 646-733-3045.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director,
National Commodity
Specialist Division