CLA-2-40:RR:NC:SP:221 M86474
Mr. J.R. Landa
Unit International, Inc.
644 Cesery Blvd., Suite 200
Jacksonville, FL 32211
RE: The tariff classification of the “Urethral Catheter Tray” from China.
Dear Mr. Landa:
In your letter dated August 21, 2006, on behalf of PSS World Medical Inc., you requested a tariff classification ruling.
A sample was provided with your letter. The Urethral Catheter Tray (Item no. 100130) consists of a plastic tray, an underpad made of paper laminated to plastic sheeting, a small drape made of paper laminated to plastic sheeting, a pair of latex gloves, a lubricant, swab sticks, a plastic specimen container, a patient label and a rubber catheter. The sterile contents are packaged together inside the tray, which is sealed across the top with a printed paper sheet.
The Explanatory Notes to the Harmonized Tariff System provide guidance in the interpretation of the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System at the international level. Explanatory Note X to GRI 3(b) provides that the term "goods put up in sets for retail sale" means goods that: (a) consist of at least two different articles which are, prima facie, classifiable in different headings; (b) consist of 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. Goods classifiable under GRI 3(b) are classified as if they consisted of the material or component which gives them their essential character, which may be determined by the nature of the material or component, its bulk, quantity, weight or value, or by the role of a constituent material in relation to the use of the article. This office considers the urethral catheter tray to be a set for tariff classification purposes, with the essential character imparted by the rubber catheter.
The applicable subheading for the Urethral Catheter Tray will be 4014.90.5000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for hygienic or pharmaceutical articles (including nursing nipples), of vulcanized rubber other than hard rubber, with or without fittings of hard rubber: other: other. The rate of duty will be 4.2 percent ad valorem.
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 Joan Mazzola at 646-733-3023.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director,
National Commodity
Specialist Division