CLA-2-94:OT:RR:NC:N4:433
Douglas Lipski
Customs Compliance Specialist, LCB
International Trade/Customs Compliance
IKEA Purchasing Services (US), Inc.
3200 Horizon Drive, Suite 120
King of Prussia, PA 19406
RE: The tariff classification of a cradle with sleeping pad from Poland.
Dear Mr. Lipski:
In your letter dated May 15, 2018 received by the National Commodity Specialist Division on July 24, 2018, you requested a tariff classification ruling.
Article number 90362426 is the IKEA – “SOLGUL cradle with sleeping pad.” The cradle is made of solid beech wood and mounted on rockers, and comes with a sleeping pad having an outer covering of 65% polyester and 35% cotton, which is filled with polyurethane foam. You indicate that the sleeping pad is sized to specifically fit the cradle, is integral to the cradle to make it complete and functional for use by the consumer, and will not be sold separately. Both the cradle and sleeping pad will be packaged together in a single box in knockdown, unassembled condition.
Classification under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) is made in accordance with the General Rules of Interpretation (GRIs). GRI 1 provides that the classification of goods shall be determined according to the terms of the headings of the tariff schedule and any relative section or chapter notes. In the event that the goods cannot be classified solely on the basis of GRI 1, and if the headings and legal notes do not otherwise require, the remaining GRIs 2 through 6 may then be applied in order. We note that GRI 1 is not applicable to the merchandise concerned as the cradle with sleeping pad will be imported in knockdown, unassembled condition.
Legal Note 3 (b) to Chapter 94, HTSUS, provides insight to the proper classification of the merchandise concerned. Legal Note 3 (b) states; “Goods described in heading 9404, entered separately, are not to be classified in heading 9401, 9402 or 9403 as parts of goods.” Upon review of the description provided, the sleeping pad is never sold separately from that of the cradle, and therefore Legal Note 3 (b) to Chapter 94, HTSUS, is inapplicable. Furthermore, the corollary to Legal Note 3 (b) to Chapter 94 would indicate that the merchandise concerned, being entered together, would be classified as a “type of infant sleeping bed” in heading 9403, HTSUS.
Under GRI 2 (a) of the HTSUS, “any reference to an article shall be taken to include a reference to that article incomplete or unfinished, provided that, as presented, the incomplete or unfinished article has the essential character of the complete or finished article. It shall also include a reference to that article complete or finished (or falling to be classified as complete or finished by virtue of this rule), entered unassembled or disassembled.”
When interpreting and implementing the HTSUS, the Explanatory Notes (ENs) of the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System may be utilized. The ENs, while neither legally binding nor dispositive, provide a guiding commentary on the scope of each heading, and are generally indicative of the proper interpretation of the HTSUS. CBP believes the ENs should always be consulted. See T.D. 89-80, 54 Fed. Reg. 35127, 35128 (August 23, 1989).
The ENs to the General Rules for the Interpretation of the Harmonized System, Rule 2 (a) (Articles presented unassembled or dissembled) provided at:
(V) The second part of Rule 2 (a) provides that complete or finished articles presented unassembled or disassembled are to be classified in the same heading as the assembled article. When goods are so presented, it is usually for reasons such as requirements or convenience of packing, handling or transportation.
(VI) This Rule also applies to incomplete or unfinished articles presented unassembled or disassembled provided that they are to be treated as complete or finished articles by virtue of the first part of this Rule.
(VII) For the purposes of this Rule, “articles presented unassembled or disassembled” means articles the components of which are to be assembled either by means of fixing devices (screws, nuts, bolts, etc.) or by riveting or welding, for example, provided only assembly operations are involved.
We are satisfied that the cradle with sleeping pad are imported in a complete and unassembled condition, and as such are presented together for reasons of convenience of packing, handling, or transport. Moreover, the cradle is assembled by means of simple fixing devices.
Next, we must now determine whether the cradle with sleeping pad is a composite good or a good put up in a set for retail sale. GRI 3 (b) states that: Mixtures, composite goods consisting of different materials or made up of different components, and goods put up in sets for retail sale, which cannot be classified by reference to 3 (a), shall be classified as if they consisted of the material or component which gives them their essential character, insofar as this criterion is applicable.
In part, EN 3 (b) (IX) states that: For the purposes of this Rule, composite goods made up of different components shall be taken to mean not only those in which the components are attached to each other to form a practically inseparable whole but also those with separable components, provided these components are adapted one to the other and are mutually complementary and that together they form a whole which would not normally be offered for sale in separate parts.
For classification purposes, it is our position that, based upon the above definition, the cradle with sleeping pad constitutes a “composite” good. The merchandise concerned consists of separable parts/components (cradle and fitted sleeping pad) which are adapted one to the other and together form a whole which would not normally be offered for sale separately, either as parts or components.
EN 3 (b) (X) states that: For the purpose of this Rule, the term “goods put up in sets for retail sale” shall be taken to mean goods which:
(a) consist of at least two different articles which are, prima facie, classifiable in different headings . . .;
(b) consist of products or articles put up together to meet a particular need or carry out a specific activity; and
(c) are put up in a manner suitable for sale directly to users without repacking (e.g., in boxes or cases or on boards).
The components of the merchandise concerned, the cradle and sleeping pad, are not articles which are sold separately. Further, the cradle and sleeping pad are components adapted one to another to form a type of infant sleeping bed – see exemplars of composite goods in EN 3 (b) (IX). Consequently, the cradle with sleeping pad is not a good put up in a set for retail sale, because it does not consist of separately identifiable articles classifiable in two or more headings of the HTSUS; the merchandise concerned fails the [set test] as defined in EN 3 (b) (X).
With case in point that the cradle with sleeping pad is a composite good (cradle made of solid wood and sleeping pad of textile material), we must determine which of the two components impart the essential character to the good. The Explanatory Notes (ENs) to the HTSUS, GRI 3 (b) (VIII), state: “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 our opinion, even without a material breakdown table, that the solid wood cradle imparts the essential character to the good, because all of the essential character factors, the weight, the cost, the functionality to safely confine the infant for purposes of sleeping or idle activity, and the esthetics of purchase are provided by the solid wood cradle. See Headquarters ruling letter HQ 956018 dated July 8, 1994 and New York ruling letter N282057 dated January 20, 2017.
The applicable subheading for the “SOLGUL cradle with sleeping pad” will be 9403.50.9042, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for “Other furniture and parts thereof: Wooden furniture of a kind used in the bedroom: Other: Other: Beds: Toddler beds, bassinets, and cradles.” 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 the World Wide Web at https://hts.usitc.gov/current.
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 [email protected].
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division