CLA-2-15:OT:RR:NC:N5:231
Mr. Levi Meyers
GG-Technik Sales & Service Inc.
DBA RM Essentials
6744 Foothills Drive
Vernon, British Columbia V1B 2Y3
Canada
RE: The tariff classification, country of origin, and eligibility under the United States-Mexico-Canada
Agreement (USMCA) for Hazelnut Oil, Walnut Oil, and Flaxseed Oil from Canada
Dear Mr. Meyers:
In your letter dated July 31, 2025, you requested a ruling on the tariff classification, country of origin, and
eligibility under the USMCA of Hazelnut Oil, Walnut Oil, and Flaxseed Oil.
Ingredient breakdowns, production descriptions, and product specifications accompanied your inquiry, in
addition to marketing literature.
The subject merchandise is cold-pressed organic hazelnut, walnut and flaxseed oils. The products consist of
cold-pressed edible oils obtained from hazelnuts, walnuts, and flaxseeds. In each case, the raw nuts or seeds
are grown and harvested in either Canada (hazelnuts and flaxseeds) or the United States (walnuts), and the
pressing operations are carried out in Canada at temperatures below 40°C. Following pressing, the oils are
allowed to settle naturally for 24 to 48 hours and are gravity filtered without the use of additives, solvents, or
chemical modifications. The finished oils are imported into the United States for fulfillment of
direct-to-consumer online orders and are packaged and labeled for retail sale in amber glass bottles. The
hazelnut oil and walnut oil are bottled in 100 ml sizes, while the flaxseed oil is bottled in both 100 ml and
250 ml sizes. All are marketed for culinary applications.
Classification:
You have requested tariff classification of the Hazelnut Oil, Walnut Oil, and Flaxseed Oil under subheading
1515.90.8090, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). This classification is not possible
because the requested provision does not exist in the HTSUS.
The applicable subheading for the Hazelnut Oil and Walnut Oil will be 1515.90.2100, HTSUS, which
provides for: “Other fixed vegetable or microbial fats and oils (including jojoba oil) and their fractions,
whether or not refined, but not chemically modified: Other: Nut Oils.” The rate of duty will be Free.
The applicable subheading for the Flaxseed Oil will be 1515.11.0000, HTSUS, which provides for: “Other
fixed vegetable or microbial fats and oils (including jojoba oil) and their fractions, whether or not refined, but
not chemically modified: Linseed oil and its fractions: Crude Oil.” The rate of duty will be 6.3 cents per
kilogram.
Country of Origin:
When determining the country of origin, the substantial transformation analysis is applicable. See, e.g.,
Headquarters Ruling Letter (“HQ”) H301619, dated November 6, 2018. The test for determining whether a
substantial transformation will occur is whether an article emerges from a process with a new name,
character, or use different from that possessed by the article prior to processing. See Texas Instruments Inc.
v. United States, 681 F.2d 778 (C.C.P.A. 1982). This determination is based on the totality of the evidence.
See National Hand Tool Corp. v. United States, 16 C.I.T. 308 (1992), aff’d, 989 F.2d 1201 (Fed. Cir. 1993).
The “country of origin” is defined in 19 CFR 134.1(b) as “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 this part; however, for a good of a NAFTA or USMCA country, the marking
rules set forth in part 102 of this chapter (hereinafter referred to as the part 102 Rules) will determine the
country of origin.”
Pursuant to section 102.0, interim regulations, related to the marking rules, tariff-rate quotas, and other
USMCA provisions, published in the Federal Register on July 6, 2021 (86 FR 35566), the rules set forth in
§§102.1 through 102.18 and 102.20 determine the country of origin for marking purposes with respect to
goods imported from Canada and Mexico. Section 102.11 provides a required hierarchy for determining the
country of origin of a good for marking purposes, with the exception of textile goods which are subject to the
provisions of 19 C.F.R. §102.21. Applied in sequential order, the required hierarchy establishes that: (a) 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 set
out in section 102.20 and satisfies any other applicable requirements of that section, and all other
requirements of these rules are satisfied.
The subject merchandise is “produced exclusively from domestic materials,” namely from Canada and the
United States. As such, Section 102.11(a)(2) applies to the facts presented in this case because the oils are
made entirely from “domestic” materials.
Therefore, in accordance with 19 C.F.R. §102.11(a)(3), the country of origin of the oil products is Canada.
USMCA:
The USMCA was signed by the Governments of the United States, Mexico, and Canada on November 30,
2018. The USMCA was approved by the U.S. Congress with the enactment on January 29, 2020, of the
USMCA Implementation Act, Pub. L. 116-113, 134 Stat. 11, 14 (19 U.S.C. §4511(a)). General Note (“GN”)
11 of the HTSUS implements the USMCA. GN 11(b) sets forth the criteria for determining whether a good
is an originating good for purposes of the USMCA. GN 11(b) states:
For the purposes of this note, a good imported into the customs territory of the United States from the
territory of a USMCA country, as defined in subdivision (l) of this note, is eligible for the preferential tariff
treatment provided for in the applicable subheading and quantitative limitations set forth in the tariff schedule
as a “good originating in the territory of a USMCA country” only if –
(i) the good is a good wholly obtained or produced entirely in the territory of one or more USMCA countries;
(ii) the good is a good produced entirely in the territory of one or more USMCA countries, exclusively from
originating materials;
(iii) the good is a good produced entirely in the territory of one or more USMCA countries using
non-originating materials, if the good satisfies all applicable requirements set forth in this note (including the
provisions of subdivision (o));
Here, the goods will be produced in Canada using originating ingredients. Therefore, they are considered
products made exclusively from originating materials per GN 11(b)(ii). As such, they will be eligible for
preferential tariff treatment under the USMCA when imported to the United States from Canada.
Products of Canada as provided by heading 9903.01.01 in Section XXII, Chapter 99, Subchapter III, U.S.
Note 2(a), HTSUS, other than products classifiable under headings 9903.01.02, 9903.01.03, 9903.01.04, and
9903.01.05, HTSUS, will be subject to an additional 25 percent ad valorem rate of duty. At the time of entry,
you must report the applicable Chapter 99 heading, i.e. 9903.01.01, in addition to subheadings 1515.11.0000
and 1515.90.2100, HTSUS, listed above. Articles that are entered free of duty under the terms of general
note 11 to the HTSUS (U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), including any treatment set forth in
subchapter XXIII of Chapter 98 and subchapter XXII of chapter 99 of the HTSUS, will not be subject to the
additional ad valorem duties provided for in heading 9903.01.01. If your product is entered duty free as
originating under the USMCA, you must report heading 9903.01.04, HTSUS, in addition to subheading
1515.11.0000 and 1515.90.2100, HTSUS.
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 Canada are not
subject to reciprocal tariffs. At the time of entry, you must report the Chapter 99 heading applicable to your
product classification, i.e. 9903.01.26, in addition to subheading 1515.11.0000 and 1515.90.2100, HTSUS,
listed above.
The tariffs and additional duties cited herein 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
(CFR), 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 CFR 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).
This merchandise is subject to The Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act
of 2002 (The Bioterrorism Act), which is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Information on the Bioterrorism Act can be obtained by calling FDA at (301) 575-0156, or at the Web site
www.fda.gov/oc/bioterrorism/bioact.html.
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 Ekeng Manczuk at [email protected].
Sincerely,
(for)
Denise Faingar
Acting Director
National Commodity Specialist Division