CLA-2-82:OT:RR:NC:N4:110
Mr. Hatto Dachgruber
Allround Forwarding Co., Inc.
134 West 26th Street
New York, NY 10001
RE: The tariff classification of a knife block set from India and China
Dear Mr. Dachgruber:
In your letter dated February 1, 2017, on behalf of Zwilling J A Henckels LLC, you requested a tariff classification ruling.
The merchandise under consideration is a knife block set. The set includes: a 3 inch paring knife, a 5 inch serrated utility knife, a 5 inch santoku hollow edge knife, a pair of kitchen shears, a sharpening steel and a hardwood block featuring knives slots. The knives’ handles are made of rubber or plastic. It is stated that the knives are made in India and the wooden block, the shears and the sharpening steel are made in China. The entire set is packaged together for retail sale in India and then shipped into the United States.
General Rule of Interpretation (GRI) 1, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), states in part that for legal purposes, classification shall be determined according to the terms of the headings, any relative section or chapter notes and, unless otherwise required, according to the remaining GRI’s taken in order. When, by application of rule 2(b) or for any other reason, goods are, prima facie, classifiable under two or more headings, classification
shall be effected as follows: (a) The heading which provides the most specific description shall be preferred to headings providing a more general description. However, when two or more headings each refer to part only of the materials or substances contained in mixed or composite
goods or to part only of the items in a set put up for retail sale, those headings are to be regarded as equally specific in relation to those goods, even if one of them gives a more complete or precise description of the goods. (b) Mixtures, composite goods consisting of different materials or made up of different components, and goods put up in sets for retail sale, which cannot be classified by reference to 3(a), shall be classified as if they consisted of the material or component which gives them their essential character, insofar as this criterion is applicable.
(c) When goods cannot be classified by reference to 3(a) or 3(b), they shall be classified under the heading which occurs last in numerical order among those which equally merit consideration.
Goods that are, prima facie, classifiable under two or more headings, are classifiable in accordance with GRI 3. GRI 3(a) states that the heading which provides the most specific description shall be preferred to headings providing a more general description. However, when two or more headings refer to part only of the items in a set put up for retail sale, those headings are to be regarded as equally specific in relation to the goods, even if one of them gives a more complete or precise description of the good. The headings at issue only refer to part of the items in the set put up for retail sale. As such, they are regarded as equally specific and classification of the set is to be determined by GRI 3(b) or GRI 3(c) taken in the appropriate order in which they are set out in GRI 3. The ENs to GRI 3(b) state, in pertinent part, the following: (VIII) The factor which determines the essential character will vary as between different kinds of goods. It may, for example, 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 goods. The knife block set consists of at least two different articles that are, prima facie, classifiable in different headings. It consists of articles put up together to carry out a specific activity. Finally the articles are put up in a manner suitable for sale directly to users without repacking. Therefore, the set in question is within the term "goods put up in sets for retail sale."
You also inquired whether the duty will be assessed only on the Chinese products in the set (wooden block, shears and sharpening steel.)
Treasury Decision ("T.D.") 91-7 (dated January 8, 1991), held that for GRI 3(b) sets which claimed preferential tariff treatment under the GSP after August 20, 1990, all the components of the set have to satisfy the "product of" requirement. Therefore, in considering a hairdressing set consisting of a comb, brush and scissors made in Jamaica, and hair clippers made in Taiwan, CBP held that neither the set nor any part of the set would be entitled to duty-free treatment under the Caribbean Basin Initiative. The same would be true under the GSP with regard to all articles entered after August 20, 1990.
The knife block set does not satisfy the “product of” requirement of the T.D. We find that neither the set nor any part of the set would be entitled to duty-free treatment under the GSP.
The applicable subheading for the knife block set will be 8211.92.2000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for knives with cutting blades, serrated or not (including pruning knives), other than knives of heading 8208, and blades and other base metal parts thereof: other: other knives having fixed blades: with rubber or plastic handles: kitchen and butcher knives. The rate of duty will be 0.8 cents each plus 4.6 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 https://hts.usitc.gov/current.
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 Hope Abada at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division