CLA-2-63:OT:RR:NC:N3:351
Mr. Steve Haverstick
RIO Brands, Inc.
10981 Decatur Road
Philadelphia, PA 19154
RE: The tariff classification of a beach tent from China
Dear Mr. Haverstick:
In your letter dated December 30, 2010, you requested a tariff classification ruling.
You submitted pictures of your “Tri-Pod Sun Shelter Umbrella.” It is made of polyester fabric and has fiberglass poles that extend from the top to the four corners, forming what may be called a bell tent. Each side has a triangular opening so that the tent provides protection from the sun but has open sides. The points at which it touches the ground (the four corners, so to speak) have pockets that can be filled with sand for weight; in addition, there are guy ropes and stakes for additional stability or for use when not at the beach, as at a park or backyard. There is no floor.
The applicable subheading for the Tri-Pod Sun Shelter Umbrella with all its parts and accessories as described above will be 6306.22.9030, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for tents: of synthetic fibers: Other, other. The rate of duty will be 8.8% ad valorem.
You state that the correct classification for this product is subheading 6601.10.0000, HTSUS, which provides for umbrellas and sun umbrellas, including garden umbrellas, and similar umbrellas. You give several reasons. First, you state that this item “would never be used for any function comparable to a tent.” We disagree. Heading 6306, HTSUS, provides for tents of textile materials. The Explanatory Notes (EN) to the HTSUS constitutes the official interpretation of the tariff at the international level. The EN to heading 6306 states, in pertinent part:
(4) Tents are shelters made of lightweight to fairly heavy fabrics of man-made fibres, cotton or blended textile materials, whether or not coated, covered or laminated, or of canvas.
They usually have a single or double roof and sides or walls (single or double), which permit the formation of an enclosure. The heading covers tents of various sizes and shapes, e.g., marquees and tents for military, camping (including backpack tents), circus, beach use. They are classified in this heading, whether or not presented complete with their tent poles, tent pegs, guy ropes or other accessories.
Webster's II New Riverside University Dictionary (1984) defines the instant terms as follows:
Tent: a portable shelter ... stretched over a supporting framework of poles with ropes and pegs.
Marquee: a large open-sided tent, used chiefly for outdoor entertainment.
The Tri-Pod Sun Shelter Umbrella is clearly analogous to a marquee, more commonly called a gazebo, which has a roof but no sides. In addition, it is clearly for beach use, as you state. This answers your second concern, that the sand pockets “are specific to beach use . . . .”
Your third point, that classification as a tent “forces this product into certain material testing requirements applicable to tents but not properly applicable to beach umbrellas.” To this we can only suggest that you may wish to contact the Consumer Product Safety Commission, 5401 Westbard Avenue, Bethesda, Maryland 20207, to obtain relevant information. Such considerations, however, cannot enter our determination of the correct classification of any item.
You state that as a consequence of any such requirements this product would be too expensive to be marketed. Again, this is not something we can consider, but we can point out that many similar, if not identical, products are currently marketed.
As a final point, you state that the absence of a center pole should not eliminate this product from being considered an umbrella, and you cite so-called off-set umbrellas, which have a stand outside the umbrella covering from which the covering hangs. We agree that an umbrella need not have a center pole for tariff classification purposes. There is, in fact, no specific tariff definition of an umbrella. Where there is no tariff definition, such a term must be construed in accordance with its common meaning.
The Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary) has this definition:
a collapsible shade for protection against weather consisting of fabric stretched over hinged ribs radiating from a central pole
In addition, heading 6603, HTSUS, covers parts of umbrellas. The EN to this heading specifies
(2) Frames, including frames mounted on sticks, and ribs and stretchers for frames.
It is clear that the Tri-Pod Sun Shelter Umbrella does not conform to any definition of an umbrella. In addition, the EN to heading 66.01specifically exclude, at (b), “Beach tents not having the character of umbrellas or umbrella tents (heading 63.06) [emphasis in original].
Umbrella tents are defined in the EN to heading 66.01, as follows:
Umbrella tents consist of large umbrellas provided with a “curtain surround” which may be affixed to the ground (e.g., by means of pegs in the manner of a bell tent, or anchored by means of sand pockets on the inside of the “surround”).
Because the Tri-Pod Sun Shelter Umbrella is not an actual umbrella, it cannot be classified as an umbrella tent.
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 the 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 Mitchel Bayer at (646) 733-3102.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division