CLA-2-94:OT:RR:NC:N4:433
Bryon Brown
Global Sourcing
Lifetime Products Inc.
Freeport Center, Building D-12
Clearfield, UT 84016
RE: The tariff classification of a garage work table from China.
Dear Mr. Brown:
In your letter dated April 15, 2015, you requested a tariff classification ruling. Illustrative literature and a cost breakdown by material were provided. The material breakdown provided does not include the weight of each material, nor any other factors associated to each of the materials.
You specifically request a ruling on the tabletop and frame referenced as a kit, the metal parts (for classification purposes the frame) imported separately, and the rubber wood tabletop imported separately.
The item is described as the Lifetime “Fold-Down Garage Table.” The item is a garage work table consisting of a rubber wood tabletop and a steel frame. The steel frame has a box-like design and two legs, which support the rubber wood tabletop. This item is designed to be mounted to a home garage wall. When not in use, the work table can be folded to save space. Information pertaining to the material breakdown indicates that the cost of the steel frame is significantly more than the cost of the rubber wood tabletop.
The garage work table when imported as a kit is a composite good consisting of different components (i.e., metal frame and wood tabletop), and is therefore considered a composite good. Consequently, the General Rules of Interpretation (GRIs) to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), at GRI 3 (b), govern the classification of the merchandise concerned. Regarding the essential character of the merchandise concerned, the Explanatory Notes (ENs) to the HTSUS, at GRI 3 (b) (VIII), state that “the factor which determines essential character will vary between different kinds of goods. It may for example, be determined by the nature of the materials or components, its bulk, quantity, weight or value, or by the role of a constituent material in relation to the use of the goods.” When the essential character of a composite good can be determined, the whole product is classified as if it consisted only of the material or component that imparts the essential character to the composite good.
It is our opinion that the metal frame imparts the essential character to the garage work table, in that the cost of the metal frame is approximately four times the cost of the wooden tabletop, and that the metal frame appears to be of greater bulk and weight. Accordingly, the garage work table is classified in subheading 9403.20, HTSUS, the subheading covering other metal furniture.
The applicable subheading for the Lifetime “Fold-Down Garage Table,” imported as a kit, will be 9403.20.0018, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for “Other furniture and parts thereof: Other metal furniture: Household: Other: Other.” The rate of duty will be free.
The applicable subheading for the rubber wood table top, for the Lifetime “Fold-Down Garage Table,” when imported separately, will 9403.90.7080, HTSUS, which provides for “Other furniture and parts thereof: Parts: Other: Of wood: Other.” The rate of duty will be free.
The applicable subheading for the steel frame, for the Lifetime “Fold-Down Garage Table,” when imported separately, will be 9403.90.8041, HTSUS, which provides for “Other furniture and parts thereof: Parts: Other: Other: Other: Of metal: 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/.
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 Neil H. Levy at E-mail address: [email protected].
Sincerely,
Gwenn Klein Kirschner
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division