CLA-2-76:OT:RR:NC:N1:113
Ms. Leslie Zoe Grillo
QVC
1200 Wilson Drive
Mail Code 232
West Chester, PA 19380
RE: The tariff classification and country of origin of a cookware set
Dear Ms. Grillo:
In your letter dated January 25, 2010, you requested a tariff classification and country of origin ruling on a cookware set.
The merchandise is identified as a 13-piece cookware set, item number K28539. The set includes a .5 quart butter warmer with spouts, a 1.5 quart covered saucepan with spouts, a 2 quart covered saucepan with spouts, a 6 quart covered stockpot, a 4 quart covered deep sauté, an 8 inch open skillet, a 10 inch open skillet, a 10 inch slotted spatula and a solid spoon. The butter warmer, saucepans, stockpot, deep sauté and skillets are made of non-cast aluminum with a porcelain enameled exterior and a non-stick coating. The spatula and spoon are made of wood.
You also requested a ruling on the country of origin for the cookware set. In your letter you indicated that the aluminum pots and pans are made in Thailand and the wood spoons are made in China. In a telephone conversation on January 20, 2010, you stated that the subject items will be imported into the United States packaged together in a retail box ready for retail sale. As stated in Headquarters Ruling (HQ) Letter 735009 dated July 30, 1993, “The country of origin is the country where the article last underwent a substantial transformation, that is, processing which results in a change in the article's name, character, or use.” Regarding the merchandise at issue, the combining of the items into a cookware set does not constitute a substantial transformation because the resulting product is not a new article in which the constituents lose their separate identities. Each item in the subject cookware set remains clearly identifiable. Therefore, the country of origin of the aluminum pots and pans is Thailand, and the country of origin of the spatula and spoon is China as indicated in your letter.
For marking purposes, please note the required marking is addressed in Treasury Decision (T.D.) 91-7 dated January 8, 1991, which provides that materials of foreign origin which comprise sets, mixtures, or composite goods must be marked to indicate the country of origin unless substantially transformed. Pursuant to the proper country of origin marking for the cookware set as provided in the marking statute, section 304, Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), and T.D. 91-7, the subject pots and pans must be marked to indicate that the country of origin is Thailand, and the spatula and spoon must be marked to indicate that the country of origin is China.
The applicable subheading for the cookware set will be 7615.19.3025, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for table, kitchen or other household articles and parts thereof, of aluminum…other, cooking and kitchen ware, enameled or glazed or containing nonstick interior finishes, other, other. The rate of duty will be 3.1 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 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 Ann Taub at 646-733-3018.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division