CLA-2-71:OT:RR:NC:N4:433
Aiman Alyatim, President
Dubai Gold USA
701 E. Pioneer Parkway
Arlington, TX 76010
RE: The tariff classification of two sets of gold earrings from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) or Oman; whether gold bars of 24k from the United States sent to the UAE or Oman are eligible for a reduction in the calculation of the duty; and if the finished two sets of earrings qualify for GSP or any other special program.
Dear Mr. Aiman:
In your letter dated June 18, 2015, on behalf of Rena Global LLC, D/B/A Dubai Gold USA (Dubai Gold), you requested a tariff classification ruling. Two photos were provided of two different sets of gold earrings with identifying model, item or style numbers.
ER: 210514 and ER: 211027 are two different sets of 21k gold earrings. Both sets of earrings have a Middle Eastern style.
The applicable subheading for the two different sets of gold earrings will be 7113.19.5085, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for “Articles of jewelry and parts thereof, of precious metal or of metal clad with precious metal: Of precious metal, whether or not plated or clad with precious metal: Of other precious metal, whether or not plated or clad with precious metal: Other: Other: Other: Other.”
The rate of duty will be 5.5% ad valorem from the UAE, because the UAE is not listed under General Note (GN) 4, “Products of Countries Designated Beneficiary Developing Countries for Purposes of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP)” and no Free Trade Agreement with the United States is in place. See below for analysis of the “United States-Oman Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act” and its correlation to {Special Rates of Duty} under 7113.19.5085, HTSUS.
It is stated by you that, Dubai Gold buys unwanted gold jewelry from customers at your shop that will be melted down into 24k gold bars in the United States, which will then be taken to the UAE or Oman for the crafting into new jewelry. As the United States 24k gold bars are melted down in the UAE or Oman to manufacture 21k gold jewelry, they are no longer considered returned United States products not further advanced in value or improved in condition (9801, HTSUS), nor are they in a solid condition to be assembled by means of welding, soldering, riveting, force fitting, gluing, laminating, and so on (9802, HTSUS). Consequently, there is no reduction of duty for the 24k gold bars of United States origin used in the crafting of new jewelry from the UAE or Oman.
GN – 31 to the HTSUS provides for the United States-Oman Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act.
GN – 31 (a)
Originating goods under the terms of the United States-Oman Free Trade Agreement (UOFTA) are subject to duty as provided for herein. For the purposes of this note, goods of Oman, as defined in subdivisions (b) through (h) of this note, that are imported into the customs territory of the United States and entered under a provision for which a rate of duty appears in the “Special” subcolumn of column 1 followed by the symbol “OM” in parentheses are eligible for the tariff treatment and quantitative limitations set forth in the “Special” subcolumn, in accordance with sections 201 through 203, inclusive, of the United States-Oman Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act (Pub. L. 109-283). For the purposes of this note, the term “UOFTA country” refers only to Oman or to the United States.
GN – 31 (b)
For the purposes of this note, subject to the provisions of subdivisions (c), (d), (e), (g) and (h) thereof, a good imported into the United States is eligible for treatment as an originating good of a UOFTA country under the terms of this note only if –
(i) the good is a good wholly the growth, product or manufacture of Oman or of the United States, or both;
(ii) for goods {not covered} by subdivision (iii) below, the good is a new or different article of commerce that has been grown, produced or manufactured in the territory of Oman or of the United States, or both, and the sum of--
(A) the value of each material produced in the territory of Oman or of the United States, or both, and
(B) the direct costs of processing operations performed in the territory of Oman or of the United States, or both,
is not less than 35 percent of the appraised value of the good at the time the good is entered into the territory of the United States; or
(iii) the good falls in a heading or subheading covered by a provision set forth subdivision (h) of this note and--
(A) each of the nonoriginating materials used in the production of the good undergoes an applicable change in tariff classification specified in such subdivision (h) as a result of production occurring entirely in the territory of Oman or of the United States, or both; or
(B) the good otherwise satisfies the requirements specified in such subdivision (h);
and is imported directly into the territory of the United States from the territory of Oman and meets all other applicable requirements of this note. For purposes of this note, the term “good” means any merchandise, product, article or material. For purposes of subdivision (b)(ii), the formula for calculating whether the value of materials produced in the territory of one or both of the parties plus the direct costs of processing operations performed in the territory of one or both of the parties is not less than 35 percent of the appraised value of the good is (VOM + DCP)/AV X 100, where VOM is the value of a material produced in the territory of one or both of the parties as set forth in subdivision (c) of this note, DCP is the direct cost of processing operations as defined in subdivision (d)(iv)(A) of this note, and AV is the appraised value of the good.
See GN – 31 (c), for the “Value of materials.”
GN – 31 (d)
(i) For purposes of subdivision (b) (i) of this note, except as otherwise provided in subdivision (e) of this note for textile and apparel articles, the expression “goods wholly the growth, product or manufacture of Oman or of the United States, or both” means—
(A) mineral goods extracted in the territory of Oman or of the United States, or both;
(B) vegetable goods, as such a good is provided for in the tariff schedule, harvested in the territory of Oman or of the United States, or both;
(C) live animals born and raised in the territory of Oman or of the United States, or both;
(D) goods obtained from live animals raised in the territory of Oman or of the United States, or both;
(E) goods obtained from hunting, trapping or fishing in the territory of Oman or of the United States, or both;
(F) goods (fish, shellfish and other marine life) taken from the sea by vessels registered or recorded with Oman or with the United States and flying its flag;
(G) goods produced on board factory ships from the goods referred to in subdivision (F), provided such factory ships are registered or recorded with Oman or with the United States and flying its flag;
(H) goods taken by Oman or the United States, or a person of Oman or of the United States, from the seabed or beneath the seabed outside territorial waters, provided that Oman or the United States has rights to exploit such seabed;
(I) goods taken from outer space, provided such goods are obtained by Oman or the United States, or a person of Oman or of the United States, and are not processed in the territory of a country other than Oman or the United States;
(J) waste and scrap derived from–
(1) production or manufacture in the territory of Oman or of the United States, or both; or
(2) used goods collected in the territory of Oman or of the United States, or both, if such goods are fit only for the recovery of raw materials;
(K) recovered goods derived in the territory of Oman or of the United States from used goods, and utilized in the territory of that country in the production of remanufactured goods; and
(L) goods produced in the territory of Oman or of the United States, or both, exclusively--
(1) from goods referred to in subdivisions (A) through (J) above, inclusive, or
(2) from the derivatives of goods referred to in such subdivisions,
at any stage of production.
Upon review of the applicable GNs above to the UOFTA, we find, specifically, that GN 31 (b) (iii), is inapplicable, in that Chapter 71 goods are not covered in subdivision (h) – “Product-specific rules of origin.” Accordingly, GN 31 (b) (i) or (ii) is implicated. The unwanted gold jewelry from customers collected in the United States, and subsequently melted down into 24k gold bars in the United States are goods wholly the product or manufacture of the United States as they fall within the meaning of [GN – 31 (d) (J) (2)], used goods collected in the territory of Oman or of the United States, or both, if such goods are fit only for the recovery of raw materials. Provided there are no foreign inputs, the two different sets of gold earrings produced in the territory of Oman exclusively from gold bars which are wholly the product or manufacture of the United States [GN – 31 (d) (L) (1)] are eligible for duty-free treatment under GN – 31 (b) (i) of the UOFTA.
Please see documentary requirements of 19 Code of Federal Regulations: 19 CFR, Part 10, Subpart P – United States-Oman Free Trade Agreement, prior to claiming preferential tariff treatment under the Free Trade Agreement.
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