CLA-2-29:OT:RR:NC:N3:140
Mr. Mark K. Smith
Kowa American Corp
55 East 59th Street
New York, NY 10022
RE: The tariff classification of Taurine (CAS 107-35-7) from Japan
Dear Mr. Smith:
In your letter dated January 13, 2021, you requested a tariff classification ruling.
In your request letter, you state that you are looking for the HTSUS # for Taurine (CAS # 107-35-7). You indicate that the organic chemical will be imported from Japan. It is an amino acid used in nutritional beverages, pet food and drinks. The material being imported will be 99.0 percent Taurine, with any other components being unintended impurities. You specify that the imported product is chemically synthesized entirely in Japan. Taurine is an amino sulfonic acid that is a 2-amino derivative of ethanesulfonic acid. It is a naturally occurring amino acid derived from methionine and cysteine metabolism. It is a conjugate acid of a 2-aminoethanesulfonate. It is also known as 2-aminoethanesulfonic acid.
The instant product is among those specifically provided for in the Pharmaceutical Appendix (Table 1). The Pharmaceutical Appendix was incorporated into the HTSUS by Presidential Proclamation. See Proclamation No. 6763, 60 Fed. Reg. 1007 (1994). This Proclamation also added General Note 13 to the HTSUS. General Note 13 states the following:
"Whenever a rate of duty of "Free" followed by the symbol "K" in parentheses appears in the "Special" subcolumn for a heading or subheading, any product (by whatever name known) classifiable in such provision which is the product of a country eligible for tariff treatment under column 1 shall be entered free of duty, provided that such product is included in the pharmaceutical appendix to the tariff schedule.
Products in the pharmaceutical appendix include the salts, esters and hydrates of the International Non-proprietary Name (INN) products enumerated in table 1 of the appendix that contain in their names any of the prefixes or suffixes listed in table 2 of the appendix, provided that any such salt, ester or hydrate is classifiable in the same 6-digit tariff provision as the relevant product enumerated in table 1."
The applicable subheading for the Taurine (CAS 107-35-7) will be 2921.19.6190, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for "Amine function compounds: Acyclic monoamines and their derivatives; salts thereof: Other: Other: Other: Other." Pursuant to the requirements of General Note 13 to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States, Taurine will be free of duty.
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 merchandise may be subject to the requirements of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), which are administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Information on the TSCA can be obtained by contacting the EPA at Document Control Office (7407M), Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C., 20460, by calling the Toxic Substances Control Act Hotline at (202) 554-1404, by e-mailing to [email protected], or by visiting their website at www.epa.gov.
You also asked what the duty rate would be if the above product was imported from China. As it does not apply to the instant ruling, we did not address that issue in the above reply. You can find this information in the back of the current tariff under Subchapter III Temporary Modifications Established Pursuant to Trade Legislation. The most recent version of the HTSUS can be found at https://hts.usitc.gov/current. Please feel free to email or call us with any question that you may have.
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 Paul Hodgkiss at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division