CLA-2-85:OT:RR:NC:1:110
Mr. Troy D. Crago-Edwards
Atico International
501 South Andrews Avenue
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
RE: The tariff classification of a flashlight from China.
Dear Mr. Crago-Edwards:
In your letter dated June 23, 2010, you requested a tariff classification ruling.
The merchandise under consideration is described as the Glow Stick with Whistle and Emergency Flasher, item number A014CA01534. A sample was submitted with your ruling request and will be returned to you.
The Glow Stick with Whistle and Emergency Flasher is cylindrical in shape and made of plastic, designed to fit comfortably in the hand and measuring approximately 7½ inches long with a diameter of ¾ inches. At one end of the housing is a light head measuring approximately 2 inches that contains a white LED (light emitting diode) lamp and reflector under a clear lens. The remaining 5½ inches of the flashlight housing is a clear plastic tube with built-in whistle that is screwed into the rear of the light head, which features a blue LED lamp that, when activated, causes the clear housing to glow. A push-button switch on the light head allows the flashlight to cycle between flashlight on, flashlight and housing on, flashlight off and housing on, flashlight housing flashing, and all lights off.
“Flashlights” have been defined in previous Customs Rulings as small battery-operated portable electric lights normally held in the hand by the housing itself, whose primary function is to project a beam of light (HQ 084852). The Glow Stick with Whistle and Emergency Flasher meets this definition by virtue of its design.
The applicable subheading for the Glow Stick with Whistle and Emergency Flasher will be 8513.10.2000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for “Portable electric lamps designed to function by their own source of energy (for example, dry batteries, storage batteries, magnetos)…: Lamps: Flashlights.” The general rate of duty will be 12.5 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 Thomas Campanelli at (646) 733-3016.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division