CLA-2-44:OT:RR:NC:2:230
Mr. Bruce R. Baxter
Wellmade Performance Flooring
26100 SW 95th Avenue
Suite 205
Wilsonville, OR 97070
RE: The tariff classification of engineered flooring panels from China
Dear Baxter:
In your letter dated May 15, 2012, you requested a tariff classification ruling.
The ruling was requested on engineered flooring panels. Four representative samples were submitted for our review
The first product is a multilayer, bamboo-faced flooring panel measures approximately 4” wide x 3/8” thick x 12” to 48” in length as imported. The edges and ends of the panel are tongued and grooved with an interlocking profile. The panel consists of three layers laminated together. The face layer is a 2mm thick veneer of strand woven bamboo. The center layer is 6mm thick, high density fiberboard. The back layer is a 2mm thick poplar veneer. The panel has a 13-layer clear acrylic/urethane finish with aluminum oxide.
The multilayer, bamboo-faced flooring panel is a composite good made up of different components. General Rule of Interpretation 3(b), Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), states that composite goods are to be classified according to the material or component that gives them their essential character. The essential character of the item is imparted by the bamboo strand face, which is crucial to the product’s consumer appeal.
The applicable subheading for the bamboo-faced flooring panel, described above, will be 4412.10.9000, HTSUS, which provides for Plywood, veneered panels and similar laminated wood: Of bamboo: Other (than plywood). The rate of duty will be free.
The second product is a eucalyptus-faced plywood flooring panel. As imported, the panel measures approximately 5 ½” wide x ½” thick x 39.37” in length. The edges and ends of the panel are tongued and grooved. The panel consists of four layers laminated together. The face layer is a 2mm thick veneer of strand eucalyptus. The remaining layers are composed of horizontally oriented, edge-glued bamboo strips. The grains of the three layers run at angles to one another, with that of the back ply running the length of the panel. The flooring panel has a 13-layer clear acrylic/urethane finish with aluminum oxide.
The ENs to heading 44.12 describe the term "plywood" as follows: Plywood consist(s) of three or more sheets of wood glued and pressed one on the other and generally disposed so that the grains of successive layers are at an angle; this gives the panels greater strength and, by compensating shrinkage, reduces warping. Each component sheet is known as a "ply" and plywood is usually formed of an odd number of plies, the middle ply being called the "core". According to the submitted description, composition, and construction of the subject merchandise, the panel in question is within the scope of the term "plywood" of heading 4412, HTSUS.
The applicable subheading for the eucalyptus-faced plywood flooring panel, described above, will be 4412.32.3125, HTSUS, which provides for Plywood, veneered panels and similar laminated wood: Other plywood, consisting solely of sheets of wood, each ply not exceeding 6 mm in thickness: Other, with at least one outer ply of nonconiferous wood : Not surface covered, or surface covered with a clear or transparent material which does not obscure the grain, texture or markings of the face ply: Other (than with a face ply of certain enumerated species): Wood flooring. The rate of duty will be 8 percent ad valorem.
The third product is a multilayered flooring panel. As imported, the panel measures approximately 6” wide x ½” thick x 12” to 48” in length. The edges and ends of the panel are tongued and grooved with an interlocking profile. The panel consists of eight layers laminated together. The face layer is a 4mm thick veneer of strand eucalyptus. The substrate is composed of a 7-ply wood base. You do not identify the wood type in your letter. The face, middle and back plies are arranged so that the grains of the layers run at angles to each other. The flooring panel has a 13-layer clear acrylic/urethane finish with aluminum oxide.
Additional U.S. Note 4 (b) of Chapter 44, HTSUS, states that multilayer assembled flooring panels having a face ply of 4 mm or more in thickness are included (classifiable) in heading 4418.
The applicable subheading for the multilayered flooring panel, described above, will be 4418.72.9500, HTSUS, which provides for Builders’ joinery and carpentry of wood: Assembled flooring panels: Other, multilayer: Other (than having a face ply more than 6 mm in thickness): Other (than of unidirectional bamboo). The rate of duty will be 8 percent ad valorem.
The fourth product is a multilayer, eucalyptus-faced flooring panel. As imported, the panel measures approximately 6” wide x 3/8” thick x 12” to 48” in length. The edges and ends of the panel are tongued and grooved with an interlocking profile. The panel consists of three layers laminated together. The face layer is a 2mm thick veneer of strand eucalyptus. The core layer is 6mm thick, high density fiberboard. The back layer is a 2mm thick poplar veneer. The flooring panel has a 13-layer clear acrylic/urethane finish with aluminum oxide.
The applicable subheading for the eucalyptus-faced flooring panel, described above, will be 4412.99.5100, HTSUS, which provides for Plywood, veneered panels and similar laminated wood: Other: Other: With at least one outer ply of nonconiferous wood: Other: Other. The rate of duty will be free.
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/.
The wood flooring in question, which is tongued and grooved with an interlocking profile, may be subject to an ITC exclusion order dealing with certain laminated floor panels (ITC Investigation No. 337-TA-545). The determination of whether your flooring panels are subject to the ITC Exclusion Order will be made independently of the tariff classification ruling. For further information on admissibility please contact your local Customs office prior to importation of the goods. If you require a written ruling on whether the exclusion order applies to your flooring panels, you should submit a ruling request with a sample of the flooring panels to the following office: U.S. Customs and Border Protection, IPR & Restricted Merchandise Branch, Regulations and Rulings, 799 9th Street N.W. – 7th Floor, Washington, DC 20229-1177.
The merchandise in question may be subject to antidumping duties or countervailing duties. Written decisions regarding the scope of AD/CVD orders are issued by the Import Administration in the Department of Commerce and are separate from tariff classification and origin rulings issued by Customs and Border Protection. You can contact them at http://www.trade.gov/ia/ (click on “Contact Us”). For your information, you can view a list of current AD/CVD cases at the United States International Trade Commission website at http://www.usitc.gov (click on “Antidumping and countervailing duty investigations”), and you can search AD/CVD deposit and liquidation messages using the AD/CVD Search tool at http://addcvd.cbp.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 Laurel Duvall at (646) 733-3035.
Sincerely,
Thomas J. Russo
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division