CLA-2-73:OT:RR:NC:1:117
Ms. Shama K. Patari
Barnes Richardson & Colburn, LLP
303 East Wacker Drive
Suite 1020
Chicago, IL 60601
RE: The tariff classification of sliding closet door assemblies from Canada.
Dear Ms. Patari:
In your letter dated February 25, 2014 you requested a tariff classification ruling on behalf of your client, Colonial Elegance, Inc.
The products under consideration are three different styles of sliding closet door assemblies. Photographs of each style were included with your submission.
The first style of sliding closet door is constructed of a steel frame with a mounted mirror front panel. You state that this door will be imported and sold fully assembled as a complete unit and contains all of the hardware required for installation. The door assembly will include steel rails and stiles, roller guides, connectors, steel top and bottom tracks with screws and installation instructions. You indicate that the steel frame and the hardware components comprise the majority of the value of the door.
The second style of sliding closet door consists of an aluminum frame with a mounted mirror. You state that this style of door will be imported fully assembled and will include the tracks and the hardware necessary to mount the closet doors to the walls. The aluminum framed door is comprised of aluminum rails and stiles, roller guides, connectors, steel top and bottom brackets with screws and installation instructions. You indicate that the aluminum frame makes up the majority of the value of the door.
The third style of sliding closet door for which you are requesting a ruling is constructed of a frame of medium density fiberboard (MDF) that has been coated with plastic and faced with mirrors. You state that the door will be imported fully assembled and complete with hardware for installation. You indicate that the MDF comprises the majority of the value of the door.
The classification of merchandise under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) is governed by the General Rules of Interpretation ("GRIs"), taken in order. GRI 1 requires that classification be determined according to the terms of the headings and any relative section or chapter notes. In the event that goods cannot be classified solely on the basis of GRI 1, and if the heading and legal notes do not otherwise require, the remaining GRIs will be applied, in the order of their appearance.
Goods that are, prima facie, classifiable under two or more headings, are classifiable in accordance with GRI 3, HTSUS. GRI 3(a) states in part when two or more headings each refer to part only of the materials or substances contained in mixed or composite goods, those headings are to be regarded as equally specific, even if one heading gives a more precise description of the good. Goods classifiable under GRI 3(b) are classified as if they consisted of the material or component which gives them their essential character, which may be determined by the nature of the material or component, its bulk, quantity, weight or value, or by the role of a constituent material in relation to the use of the article.
The frames (steel, aluminum or MDF) and mirrors are the elements of the door meriting consideration in classification. As the two elements are prima facie, classifiable in different headings, the door is a composite good governed by GRI 3. With regard to the steel framed closet doors, similar merchandise was ruled upon in Headquarters Ruling H069895. In that ruling, it was determined that “the steel frame is what allows the subject merchandise to function as a sliding door. It provides the door’s structure and form, holds the mirror in place, and allows the door to open and close, thereby allowing it to function as a door”. As such, the steel frame imparts the essential character of the door in accordance with GRI 3(b).
We find that Headquarters rulings H069895 and 967930 are applicable in the classification of the aluminum and MDF framed closet doors. In the case of the instant doors, as with those in the rulings, the frame – aluminum or MDF – imparts the form and allows the door to function as a door. The aluminum or MDF therefore imparts the essential character in accordance with GRI 3(b).
The applicable subheading for the steel frame sliding door will be 7308.30.5050, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for structures (excluding prefabricated buildings of heading 9406) and parts of structures (for example, bridges and
bridge sections, lock gates, towers, lattice masts, roofs, roofing frameworks, doors and windows and their frames and thresholds for doors, shutters, balustrades, pillars and columns) of iron or steel; plates, rods, angles, shapes, sections, tubes and the like, prepared for use in structures, of iron or steel: doors, windows and their frames and thresholds for doors: other, other. The general rate of duty will be free.
The applicable subheading for the aluminum framed sliding door will be 7610.10.0030, HTSUS, which provides for aluminum structures (excluding prefabricated buildings of heading 9406) and parts of structures (for example, bridges and bridge-sections, towers, lattice masts, roofs, roofing frameworks, doors and windows and their frames, and thresholds for doors, balustrades, pillars and columns), aluminum plates, rods, profiles, tubes and the like, prepared for use in structures, doors, windows and their frames and thresholds for doors, other. The general rate of duty will be 5.7 percent ad valorem.
The applicable subheading for the MDF sliding door will be 4418.20.8060, HTSUS, which provides for Builders' joinery and carpentry of wood, including cellular wood panels and assembled flooring panels: Doors and their frames and thresholds: Other: Other. The general rate of duty will be 4.8 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 classification of the steel or aluminum framed doors, please contact National Import Specialist (NIS) Mary Ellen Laker at [email protected]. If you have any questions concerning the classification of the MDF sliding door, please contact NIS Laurel Duvall at
[email protected].
Sincerely,
Gwenn Klein Kirschner
Acting Director
National Commodity Specialist Division