CLA-2-76:RR:NC:1:118 C83044

Mr. Stephen J. Smith
Hazen Paper Company
240 South Water Street
P.O. Box 189
Holyoke, MA 01041-0189

RE: The tariff classification of foil laminated paperboard from France, England, Belgium and Germany.

Dear Mr. Smith:

In your letter dated December 29, 1997, you requested a tariff classification ruling. The subject items are described as follows:

1) .OO8" (.20mm) uncoated solid bleached sulphate laminated with .000250" (5.7 micron) aluminum foil - which is purchased in rolls to be 17" wide. The weight of the paperboard is 109 lbs/3,000 sq. ft. The weight of the aluminum foil is 10.6 lbs/3,000 sq. ft. This item will be used to print scratch-off lottery tickets and will be made in France.

2) .010" (.25mm) clay coated solid bleached sulphate laminated with .000262" (6.7 micron) aluminum foil - which is purchased in rolls to be 15.25" wide. The weight of the paperboard is 133 lbs/3,000 sq. ft. The weight of the aluminum foil is 11.0 lbs/3,000 sq. ft. This item will also be used to print scratch-off lottery tickets and will be made in England.

3) .016" (.41mm) clay coated solid bleached sulphate laminated with .000270" (6.9 micron) aluminum foil - which is purchased in rolls to be 34 1/2" wide. The weight of the paperboard is 180 lbs/3,000 sq. ft. The weight of the aluminum foil is 11.4 lbs/3,000 sq. ft. This item will be used to print folding cartons and will be made in Belgium.

4) .0187" (.47 mm) clay coated thermo chemical mechanical pulp paperboard laminated with .000285" (7.2 micron) aluminum foil - which is purchased in rolls 28 1/2" wide. The weight of the paperboard is 207 lbs/3,000 sq. ft. The weight of the aluminum foil is 12.1 lbs/3,000 sq. ft. This item will also be used to print folding cartons and will be made in Germany.

For all of the items described above, adhesive is applied to aluminum foil which is then laminated to the paperboard. For items 1-3, an acrylic coating is applied to the surface of the aluminum in-line with the lamination process. There will be no surface coating of any type applied to item 4, the thermo chemical mechanical pulp paperboard.

The classification of merchandise under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS) is governed by the General Rules of Interpretation (GRI'S). GRI 1, HTS, states in part that "for legal purposes, classification shall be determined according to the terms of the headings and any relative section or chapter notes...". This Rule applies to your products.

The applicable subheading for all 4 items described above will be 7607.20.5000, HTS, which provides for aluminum foil (whether or not printed, or backed with paper, paperboard, plastics or similar backing materials) of a thickness (excluding any backing) not exceeding 0.2mm: backed: other. The duty rate will be free.

This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. 177).

A copy of this 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 Kathy Campanelli at 212-466-5492.

Sincerely,

Robert B. Swierupski
Director
National Commodity
Specialist Division