CLA-2-55:OT:RR:NC:N3:351
Mr. Michael R. Spano
Michael R. Spano & Company Incorporated
190 McKee Street
Floral Park, NY 11001
RE: The tariff classification and status under the United States-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement Implementation Act (Peru TPAIA), of yarn from Peru.
Dear Mr. Spano:
In your letter dated Nov. 4, 2011, you requested a ruling on the status of yarn from Peru under the Peru TPAIA on behalf of your client, Berroco Inc., of North Smithfield, R.I.
In your letter, submitted electronically, you supplied our office with neither a sample nor a picture of the yarn. However, in a telephone conversation with this office, you stated that it was the same as the yarns in New York Ruling Letter N190855. Those yarns had a fiber content of 50% acrylic, 40% wool and 10% nylon and were put up for retail sale in 100-gram skeins, and you stated that this yarn is the same.
According to the terms of Note 2(A) to Section XI, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), the yarn is considered a man-made staple fiber yarn; specifically, it is considered to be 60% man-made staple fibers and 40% wool. Further, according to the terms of Note 2(B)(b), it is acrylic, a synthetic yarn according to the terms of Note 1(a) to Chapter 54. The yarn meets the tariff definition of “put up for retail sale” found in Section XI, Note 4(b).
The applicable subheading for the yarn, for which you gave no style name or number, will be 5511.20.0000, HTSUS, which provides for “Yarn (other than sewing thread) of man-made staple fibers, put up for retail sale: of synthetic staple fibers, containing 85 percent or more by weight of such fibers: acrylic.” The general rate of duty will be 7.5 percent ad valorem.
The yarn is manufactured in Peru from acrylic staple fibers of Peruvian origin, wool fibers from Argentina, and nylon staple fibers that are imported into Peru from Italy.
General Note (GN) 32, HTSUS, sets forth the criteria for determining whether a good is originating under the PERU TPAIA. GN 32(b), HTSUS, (19 U.S.C. §1202) states, in pertinent part, that
For the purposes of this note, subject to the provisions of subdivisions (c), (d), (m) and (n) thereof, a good imported into the customs territory of the United States is eligible for treatment as an originating good under the terms of this note if—
(i) the good is a good wholly obtained or produced entirely in the territory of Peru, the United States, or both;
(ii) the good was produced entirely in the territory of Peru, the United States, or both, and—
(A) each of the nonoriginating materials used in the production of the good undergoes an applicable change in tariff classification specified in subdivision (n) of this note; or
(B) the good otherwise satisfies any applicable regional value content or other requirements specified in subdivision (n) of this note;
and the good satisfies all other applicable requirements of this note; or
(iii) the good was produced entirely in the territory of Peru, the United States, or both, exclusively from materials described in subdivision (b)(i) or (b)(ii) of this note.
For goods classified in heading 5511, General Note 32/55.1 requires:
A change to headings 5501 through 5511 from any other chapter, except from headings 5201 through 5203, 5401 through 5402, subheading 5403.20, 5403.33 through 5403.39, 5403.42 through 5403.49 or headings 5404 through 5405.
The non-originating materials are the nylon staple fibers and the wool fibers. The nylon staple fiber is classified in heading 5506. The wool fibers are classified in Chapter 51. Although the wool fibers meet the terms of the tariff shift, the tariff shift excludes any components classifiable in Chapter 55. The nylon staple fiber does not meet the terms of the tariff shift. However, GN 32(d)(i)(A) contains the following de minimus allowance:
A textile or apparel good that is not an originating good under the terms of this note because certain fibers or yarns used in the production of the component of the good that determines the tariff classification of the good do not undergo an applicable change in tariff classification set out in subdivision (n) of this note, shall be considered an originating good if --
(A) the total weight of all such fibers or yarns in that component is not more than ten percent of the total weight of that component . . . .
The nylon staple fiber is stated to be ten percent of the weight of the yarn and as such is considered de minimus.
Based on the facts provided, the yarn qualifies for Peru TPAIA preferential treatment because it meets the requirements of HTSUS General Note 32(b)(ii)(A). The merchandise will therefore be entitled to a free rate of duty under the Peru TPAIA upon compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, and agreements.
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 Mitchel Bayer at (646) 733-3102.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division