CLA-2-73:OT:RR:NC:N1:164
9903.88.03; 9903.88.15
David Robeson
Mohawk Global Trade Advisors
123 Air Cargo Road
North Syracuse, NY 13212
RE: The tariff classification of stainless steel items from China
Dear Mr. Robeson:
In your letter dated July 18, 2025, you requested a tariff classification ruling on behalf of your client, Caire
Inc. Product information was submitted with your request.
The three items under consideration will be incorporated into various models of the Caire Liberator Liquid
Oxygen Reservoir (Liberator) after importation. You describe the Liberator as a proprietary,
prescription-only device intended to store and supply supplemental oxygen to patients suffering from a
variety of chronic diseases including heart, lung, and other respiratory conditions such as chronic obstructive
pulmonary disease (COPD). Patients will use the Liberator to store liquid oxygen for other portable oxygen
devices, such as oxygen concentrators, enabling them to access oxygen away from home or during activity.
The Liberator may also be used in nursing homes. You state the supplemental oxygen delivered by the
Liberator can increase a patient’s blood oxygen saturation to greater than 90%, improving their mobility and
quality of life. During emergencies, or if a separate oxygen concentrator is not available, a user can also
breathe a continuous flow of oxygen directly from the Liberator. Depending on the model, the Liberator is a
large tank ranging 24.5 to 39 inches in height, 14 to 16 inches in diameter, 21 to 60.2 liters in liquid oxygen
capacity, and 39 to 75.4 pounds in empty weight.
The specific components at issue are a Neck Tube Ring, Part #21495484; a Neck Tube Short, Part
#21495483; and a Long Neck Tube, Part #21495482. You assert that the three items are custom designed
with dimensions and designs unique to the Liberator and are necessary for structural integrity and thermal
efficiency. The Neck Tube Ring is described as a circular item of stainless steel with a groove for fitting into
the reservoir’s neck tube assembly. The Neck Tube Ring has an outside diameter of 59.94 millimeters (mm),
an inside diameter of 51.18 mm, and a length of 9.65 mm. The Neck Tube Short is described as a tubular
shape of stainless steel that connects to the neck tube ring. The Neck Tube Short features an outside diameter
of 63.5 mm and a length of 44.22 mm. The Long Neck Tube is described as a cold-rolled stainless steel
seamless tube with an outside diameter of 50.8 mm, an inside diameter of 47.498 mm, and a length of 152.4
mm. You state that the Neck Tube Short and Long Neck Tube provide the channel through which oxygen
travels to be dispensed to the user. The ends of both shapes modestly jut out from the body and form a lip
around the circular openings.
In your letter, you state that the three items are parts of the Liberator and suggest classification under
subheading 9019.20.000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides, in
relevant part, for parts of an oxygen therapy apparatus. We disagree. The Caire Liberator Reservoir is a large,
stationary tank. Its primary function is to store and supply liquid oxygen, which is then used to fill portable
units, allowing patients to have access to oxygen when they are away from home or engaged in activities. As
imported, it is a metal tank without oxygen similar to empty portable medical gas cylinders for oxygen, fitted
with a valve and a pressure and flow regulator. The Liberator is not classified as an oxygen therapy apparatus
of heading 9019, HTSUS, but classified as a container for compressed or liquefied gas in another heading. As
such, subheading 9019.20.000, HTSUS will not apply.
The applicable subheading for the Neck Tube Ring, Part #21495484, will be 7326.90.8688, HTSUS, which
provides for Other articles of iron or steel: Other: Other: Other: Other: Other. The general rate of duty will be
2.9 percent ad valorem.
The applicable subheading for the Neck Tube Short, Part #21495483, will be 7326.90.8688, HTSUS, which
provides for Other articles of iron or steel: Other: Other: Other: Other: Other. The general rate of duty will be
2.9 percent ad valorem.
The applicable subheading for the Long Neck Tube, Part #21495482, will be 7304.41.6045, HTSUS, which
provides for tubes, pipes and hollow profiles, seamless, of iron (other than cast iron) or steel: other, of
circular cross section, of stainless steel: cold-drawn or cold-rolled (cold-reduced): other: other: other. The
general rate of duty will be Free.
Effective March 4, 2025, pursuant to U.S. Note 2(u) to Subchapter III, Chapter 99, all products of China and
Hong Kong as provided by heading 9903.01.24, HTSUS, other than products classifiable under headings
9903.01.21, 9903.01.22, and 9903.01.23, HTSUS, will be subject to an additional 20 percent ad valorem rate
of duty. At the time of entry, you must report the applicable Chapter 99 heading, i.e. 9903.01.24, in addition
to subheadings 7304.41.6045 and 7326.90.8688, HTSUS, listed above.
On March 12, 2025, Presidential proclamations 10895 and 10896 imposed additional tariffs on products of
steel and aluminum. Additional duties for steel and aluminum products of 50 percent are reflected in Chapter
99, heading 9903.81.87 for steel and heading 9903.85.02 for aluminum. Products classified under subheading
7304.41.6045, HTSUS, may be subject to additional duties. At the time of entry, you must report the Chapter
99 heading applicable to your product classification, i.e. 9903.81.87, in addition to the Chapter 72, 73 or 76
subheadings listed above.
On March 12, 2025, Presidential proclamation 10896 imposed additional tariffs on certain derivative iron or
steel products. Additional duties for derivative iron or steel products of 50 percent are reflected in Chapter
99, headings 9903.81.89, 9903.81.90, and 9903.81.91. Products provided by heading 9903.81.91, as well as
products of Chapter 73 provided by 9903.81.89 and 9903.81.90, will be subject to a duty of 50 percent upon
the value of the steel content. At the time of entry, you must report the Chapter 99 heading applicable to your
product classification, i.e. 9903.81.90, in addition to subheading 7326.90.8688, HTSUS. Derivative iron or
steel products processed in another country from steel articles melted and poured in the United States,
provided for in heading 9903.81.92, are not subject to the additional ad valorem duties.
Effective April 5, 2025, Executive Orders implemented “Reciprocal Tariffs.” All imported merchandise must
be reported with either the Chapter 99 provision under which the reciprocal tariff applies or one of the
Chapter 99 provisions covering exceptions to the reciprocal tariffs. At this time, products of China, Hong
Kong, and Macau will be subject to an additional ad valorem rate of duty of 10 percent. Your product falls
within an excepted subheading. At the time of entry, you must report the Chapter 99 heading applicable to
your product classification, i.e. 9903.01.33, in addition to subheadings 7304.41.6045 and 7326.90.8688,
HTSUS, listed above.
Pursuant to U.S. Note 20 to Subchapter III, Chapter 99, HTSUS, products of China classified under
subheading 7326.90.8688, HTSUS, unless specifically excluded, are subject to an additional 25 percent ad
valorem rate of duty. At the time of importation, you must report the Chapter 99 subheading, i.e., 9903.88.03,
in addition to subheading 7326.90.8688, HTSUS, listed above.
Pursuant to U.S. Note 20 to Subchapter III, Chapter 99, HTSUS, products of China classified under
subheading 7304.41.6045, HTSUS, unless specifically excluded, are subject to an additional 7.5 percent ad
valorem rate of duty. At the time of importation, you must report the Chapter 99 subheading, i.e., 9903.88. 15,
in addition to subheading 7304.41.6045, HTSUS, listed above.
The HTSUS is subject to periodic amendment, so you should exercise reasonable care in monitoring the
status of goods covered by the Note cited above and the applicable Chapter 99 subheading. For background
information regarding the trade remedy initiated pursuant to Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, including
information on exclusions and their effective dates, you may refer to the relevant parts of the USTR and CBP
websites, which are available at
https://ustr.gov/issue-areas/enforcement/section-301-investigations/tariff-actions and
https://www.cbp.gov/trade/programs-administration/trade-remedies, respectively.
In your request, you inquired about a secondary classification for the subject items under 9817.00.96,
HTSUS, which applies to articles and parts of articles specifically designed or adapted for the use or benefit
of the permanently or chronically physically or mentally handicapped. Chapter 98, Subchapter XVII, U.S.
Note 4(a), HTSUS, defines the term blind or other physically or mentally handicapped persons as including
“any person suffering from a permanent or chronic physical or mental impairment which substantially limits
one or more major life activities, such as caring for one’s self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing,
hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, or working.”
In T.D. 92-77, dated August 3, 1992 (26 Cust. Bull. 35, dated August 26, 1992), Customs set forth its
position regarding certain issues arising under the Nairobi Protocol. The first issue concerned the
interpretation of the term specially designed or adapted. Customs pointed out that a primary factor to be
considered in determining whether an article was specially designed and adapted was whether the article was
easily distinguishable, by properties of the design and the corresponding use specific to this unique design,
from articles useful to non-handicapped individuals. Therefore, if an article is solely dedicated for use by the
handicapped it is Customs position that this would be conclusive evidence that the article is specially
designed or adapted for the handicapped for purposes of the Nairobi Protocol.
With regard to the secondary classification of the Liberator, we note that Presidential Proclamation 6821 of
September 12, 1995, 60 Fed. Reg. 47633 (September 13, 1995), expanded the scope of subheadings
9817.00.92 through 9817.00.96 to include “parts or accessories” of such articles. Thus, the instant issue is
whether the three items are “parts” of an article “specially designed or adapted” for the handicapped.
In the absence of a statutory definition, courts have applied two tests to determine whether merchandise
constitutes a part of an article. See Bauerhin Technologies Limited Partnership v. United States, 110 F.3d
774, 779 (Fed. Cir. 1997). First, as set forth in United States v. Willoughby Camera Stores, Inc., a “part” of
an article is “an integral, constituent, or component part, without which the article to which it is to be joined,
could not function as such article.” 21 C.C.P.A. 322, 324 (1933). Second, as held in United States v. Pompeo,
an item is a “part” if “at the time of importation it is dedicated solely for use” with a particular article, and
“when applied to that use…meets the definition of ‘parts’ established by the Willoughby case.” 43 C.C.P.A.
9, 14 (1955). Moreover, an item is not a part if it is “a separate and distinct commercial entity.” Bauerhin,
110 F.3d at 779.
Based on the information provided, it is the opinion of this office that the Liberator Liquid Oxygen Reservoir
is specifically designed for use by handicapped individuals with a permanent or chronic heart, lung, or other
respiratory disease. In addition, none of the exclusions listed under Chapter 98, Subchapter XVII, U.S. Note
4(b) apply. Although the three items are not classified as parts for tariff classification purposes, a parallel
parts analysis confirms the items are custom designed and manufactured for dedicated use in the Liberator.
The uniquely precise dimensions and surface machining of the parts evidence this. Moreover, they are
integral, permanent components for structural support and thermal efficiency which the Liberator could not
properly function without. As such, the Neck Tube Ring, Neck Tube Short, and Long Neck Tube satisfy the
description set forth in Chapter 98, Subchapter XVII, U.S. Note 4(a). This determination is similar to
Headquarters ruling H301481 (June 14, 2019) and precedents cited therein.
Therefore, we agree that a secondary classification under 9817.00.96, HTSUS, applies, and the subject items
will be free of general duty, additional duties under 9903.01.24, 9903.81.87, 9903.81.90, 9903.88.03,
9903.88.15, and the Merchandise Processing Fee upon importation into the United States.
The tariffs and additional duties cited above are current as of this ruling’s issuance. 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 at https://hts.usitc.gov/.
The holding set forth above applies only to the specific factual situation and merchandise description as
identified in the ruling request. This position is clearly set forth in Title 19, Code of Federal Regulations
(C.F.R.), Section 177.9(b)(1). This section states that a ruling letter is issued on the assumption that all of the
information furnished in the ruling letter, whether directly, by reference, or by implication, is accurate and
complete in every material respect. In the event that the facts are modified in any way, or if the goods do not
conform to these facts at time of importation, you should bring this to the attention of U.S. Customs and
Border Protection (CBP) and submit a request for a new ruling in accordance with 19 C.F.R. 177.2.
Additionally, we note that the material facts described in the foregoing ruling may be subject to periodic
verification by CBP.
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs and Border Protection
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, please contact
National Import Specialist Paul Taylor at [email protected].
Sincerely,
(for)
James Forkan
Acting Director
National Commodity Specialist Division