CLA-2-8:OT:RR:NC:2:228
Mr. Maninder Sawhney
Accent Fusion
4620 Allistair Drive
Cumming, GA 30040
RE: The tariff classification and country of origin marking for pomegranate arils from India
Dear Sawhney:
In your letter dated February 5, 2010 you requested a tariff classification ruling.
An image of the product accompanied your letter. The product is described as fresh, unprocessed pomegranate arils (i.e., the edible portion of the pomegranate fruit, the seeds encased in a juice-filled sac). The arils will be removed from the fruit’s interior membrane and packed in 10-pound boxes. The fruit may also be packed in 2-pound containers within the larger box. Your letter states the fruit will be sold to retail and non-retail purchasers.
The applicable subheading for the fresh pomegranate arils will be 0810.90.4500, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for other fruit, fresh…other… other. The duty rate will be 2.2 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 http://www.usitc.gov/tata/hts/.
Articles classifiable under subheading 0810.90.4500, HTSUS, which are products of India may be entitled to duty free treatment under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) upon compliance with all applicable regulations. The GSP is subject to modification and periodic suspension, which may affect the status of your transaction at the time of entry for consumption or withdrawal from warehouse. To obtain current information on GSP, check our Web site at www.cbp.gov and search for the term “GSP”.
The marking statute, section 304, Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), provides that, unless excepted, every article of foreign origin (or its container) imported into the U.S. shall be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly and permanently as the nature of the article (or its container) will permit, in such a manner as to indicate to the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. the English name of the country of origin of the article.
As provided in section 134.41(b), Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.41(b)), the country of origin marking is considered conspicuous if the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. is able to find the marking easily and read it without strain.
With regard to the permanency of a marking, section 134.41(a), Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.41(a)), provides that as a general rule marking requirements are best met by marking worked into the article at the time of manufacture. For example, it is suggested that the country of origin on metal articles be die sunk, molded in, or etched. However, section 134.44, Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.44), generally provides that any marking that is sufficiently permanent so that it will remain on the article until it reaches the ultimate purchaser unless deliberately removed is acceptable.
Applying the Marking Rules set forth in section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended and section 134 of the Customs Regulations, we find that the pomegranate arils are a product of India for marking purposes. The container in which the fruit reaches the ultimate purchaser – the 10-pound box or, when packed in the smaller units described above, the 2-pound containers – must be legibly, conspicuously, and permanently marked to indicate the pomegranate fruit is a product of India.
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 Stanley Hopard at (646) 733-3029.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division