CLA-2-83:OT:RR:NC:N1:121
Clifford Chi
Hampton Products International Corporation
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Foothill Ranch, CA 92610
RE: The country of origin of a keyed entry door lock
Dear Mr. Chi:
In your letter dated October 7, 2019 you requested a country of origin ruling.
The merchandise under consideration is identified as a Keyed Entry Door Lock, Bell Knob, Antique Brass, Part Number 2101-109. According to your request, the keyed entry lock consists of a strike plate, latch assembly, and an internal and external knob assembly.
According to your request, your proposed manufacturing plan includes manufacturing the internal and external door knobs, latch assembly, strike plate, thumb turn lever, plug, and the cylinder housing with keys in Taiwan. Those components would then be exported to China and assembled with couplers, roses, a screw post, spindle, locking tab driver, cylinder housing cover and spring cage assembly of Chinese origin. The completed Keyed Entry Door Lock would be packaged in China and exported to the United States.
You state in your request that the finished Keyed Entry Door Lock is classified in subheading 8301.40.6030, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for Padlocks and locks (key, combination or electrically operated), of base metal…Other locks: Other… Door locks, locksets and other locks suitable for use with interior or exterior doors (except garage, overhead or sliding doors).
With regard to your request for the appropriate country of origin of the Keyed Entry Door Lock, 19 C.F.R. § 134.1(b) provides in pertinent part as follows: Country of origin means the country of manufacture, production, or growth of any article of foreign origin entering the United States. Further work or material added to an article in another country must effect a substantial transformation in order to render such other country the “country of origin” within the meaning of this part; As stated in HQ 735009 dated July 30, 1993, “The country of origin is the country where the article last underwent a “substantial transformation”, that is, processing which results in a change in the article's name, character, or use”. In addition, the court has held that “A substantial transformation occurs when an article emerges from a manufacturing process with a name, character, and use that differs from the original material subjected to the processing.” However, if the manufacturing or combining process is merely a minor one that leaves the identity of the article intact, a substantial transformation has not occurred. In order to determine whether a substantial transformation occurs when components of various origins are assembled into completed products, all factors such as the components used to create the product and manufacturing processes that these components undergo are considered in order to determine whether a product with a new name, character and use has been produced. No one factor is decisive. Assembly operations that are minimal will generally not result in a substantial transformation. In this instance, it is this office’s opinion that the internal and external door knobs, latch assembly, strike plate, thumb turn lever, plug, and the cylinder housing with keys which are to be manufactured in Taiwan provide the essence of the Keyed Entry Door Lock. These items are not substantially changed by either the addition of the Chinese components or the minor assembly operations performed in China. The Taiwan produced internal and external door knobs, latch assembly, strike plate, thumb turn lever, plug, and the cylinder housing with keys would provide the essential operational elements for the Keyed Entry Door Lock to work. In view of these facts, the country of origin of the Keyed Entry Door Lock, Part Number 2101-109 would be Taiwan.
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 Jennifer Jameson at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division