OT:RR:NC:N1:117
Carolyn Leski
BCB International, Inc.
1010 Niagara Street
Buffalo, New York 14213
RE: The country of origin of copper plated clipping band material from Canada
Dear Ms. Leski:
In your letter dated April 7, 2020, on behalf of your client Wolarmann Enterprise Ltd, you requested a country of origin ruling.
The product under consideration is copper plated clipping band material from Canada. According to your submission, coils of cold-rolled alloy steel, measuring 33.07” in width and 0.0134” in thickness, are imported into the U.S. from the Netherlands. In the U.S., this blackplate is first copper coated for “corrosion protection and antimicrobial benefits” at one facility and then transported to another where the coils are slit to 2.05”. At this point, the coils will be sent to Canada, where they are slit down further to a final width of 0.05”. You indicate that without any additional processing, these copper plated coils are sent/sold to produce packaging companies in the U.S. Here, this material is ultimately used to make wire clipping bands commonly seen on mesh produce bags. Your request involves the country of origin of the subject product upon its return from Canada.
The marking statute, section 304, Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), provides that, unless excepted, every article of foreign origin (or its container) imported into the U.S. shall be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly and permanently as the nature of the article (or its container) will permit, in such a manner as to indicate to the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. the English name of the country of origin of the article. Part 134, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Regulations (19 CFR Part 134) implements the country of origin marking requirements and exceptions of 19 U.S.C. 1304.
The country of origin marking requirements for a “good of a NAFTA country” are also determined in accordance with Annex 311 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), as implemented by section 207 of the North American Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act (Pub. L. 103-182, 107 Stat. 2057) (December 8, 1993) and the appropriate CBP Regulations. The Marking Rules used for determining whether a good is a good of a NAFTA country are contained in Part 102, CBP Regulations. The marking requirements of these goods are set forth in Part 134, CBP Regulations.
Section 134.1(b) of the regulations, defines “country of origin” as
the country of manufacture, production, or growth of any article of foreign origin entering the U.S. 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 this part; however, for a good of a NAFTA country, the NAFTA Marking Rules will determine the country of origin. (Emphasis added).
Section 134.1(j) of the regulations, provides that the “NAFTA Marking Rules” are the rules promulgated for purposes of determining whether a good is a good of a NAFTA country. Section 134.1(g) of the regulations defines a “good of a NAFTA country” as an article for which the country of origin is Canada, Mexico or the United States as determined under the NAFTA Marking Rules.
Part 102 of the regulations, sets forth the “NAFTA Marking Rules” for purposes of determining whether a good is a good of a NAFTA country for marking purposes. Section 102.11(a) states that the country of origin of a good is the country in which (1) the good is wholly obtained or produced; (2) the good is produced exclusively from domestic materials; or (3) each foreign material incorporated in that good undergoes an applicable change in tariff classification as set out in section 102.20 and satisfies any other applicable requirements of that section. Sections 102.11(a)(1) and 102.11(a)(2) do not apply to the facts presented in this case because the imported coils are neither wholly obtained or produced nor produced exclusively from “domestic” materials. Because the analysis of sections 102.11(a)(1) and 102.11(a)(2) does not yield a country of origin determination, we look to section 102.11(a)(3) which requires that each foreign material incorporated into the good undergoes a change in tariff classification set out in Section 102.20. At each stage, the copper coated clipping band material is classifiable in subheading 7226.90, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). The applicable rule found in Section 102.20 of the regulations to determine the country of origin for products classified in subheading 7226.90, HTSUS requires: A change to heading 7225 through 7226 from any other heading outside that group. Despite undergoing a slitting operation in Canada, which clearly brings about a dimensional change, the classification of the coils both before and after the Canadian processing remains the same. Therefore, the subject coils do not satisfy the requisite tariff shift.
Because section 102.11(a) (incorporating section 102.20), is not determinative of origin, we proceed to section 102.11(b), Customs Regulations, 19 C.F.R. 102.11(b), which states, in part:
Except for a good that is specifically described in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule as a set, or is classified as a set pursuant to General Rule of Interpretation 3, where the country of origin cannot be determined under paragraph (a) of this section:
(1) The country of origin of the good is the country or
countries of origin of the single material that
imparts the essential character of the good, ...
We find that it is the steel substrate from the Netherlands which imparts the essential character to the clipping band material, and thus we find the country of origin for marking purposes to be the Netherlands.
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 April Cutuli at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division