CLA-2-81:OT:RR:NC:N1:117
Ms. Wendy McGowan
Vallourec Heat Exchanger Tubes, Inc.
5501 Air Park Blvd.
Morristown, TN 37813
RE: The tariff classification and country of origin of titanium tubes
Dear McGowan:
In your letter dated June 8, 2015, you requested a ruling on the tariff classification and country of origin of titanium tubes.
The products under consideration are welded titanium tubes. You indicate that the tubes are manufactured in the United States from cold-rolled titanium strip that is imported from South Korea or purchased domestically. The tubes will have diameters ranging from 0.5” to 2.375” and wall thicknesses ranging from 0.016” to 0.120”. After production, they will be sold domestically or exported.
The applicable subheading for the welded titanium tubes will be 8108.90.60, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for titanium and articles thereof, including waste and scrap, other, other, tubes and pipes.
In your submission, you also request a country of origin determination for the titanium tubes. Section 134.1(b) of the Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.1(b)) provides that the "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 Part 134, Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 134). A substantial transformation occurs when articles lose their identity and become new articles having a new name, character or use. 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.
Based on the information provided, it is the opinion of this office that the titanium strip, whether imported or produced domestically, undergoes a substantial transformation resulting in a new product (tubing) with a distinctive name. As such, we find for Customs and Border Protection (CBP) purposes, that the country of origin of the titanium tubes is the United States.
We note that marking the tubes as products of the United States is a matter under the jurisdiction of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Therefore, should you wish to mark the articles for sale in the United States with the phrase “Made in the U.S.A.,” we recommend that you contact the FTC at: U.S. Federal Trade Commission, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Division of Enforcement, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580, or at the FTC’s website, http://www.ftc.gov.
With regard to the tubes to be sold abroad, CBP cannot advise on country of origin marking requirements for exports. Customs authorities in the intended countries in which the tubes will be exported should be consulted on their particular country’s marking requirements.
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 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 Mary Ellen Laker at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Gwenn Klein Kirschner
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division