Laura Moya
Nakachi Eckhardt & Jacobson, P.C.
50 California Street
San Francisco, CA 94111
RE: The country of origin and eligibility under United States Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA) on
bracelets
Dear Ms. Moya:
In your letter dated August 25, 2025, you requested a binding ruling on bracelets on behalf of your client,
Sunrise Jewelry Manufacturing Cooperation.
Style BB131-S is a 14K white gold stretch bracelet set with diamonds.
The second article is style BB131-S without the diamonds.
The manufacturing steps for both bracelets are as follows:
United States
USMCA certified gold grain is obtained
USMCA certified metal is alloyed
Stainless steel spring is manufactured and obtained
Mexico
Casting of the bracelets
Removing individual links from the casting tree
Individual links will be assembled onto a stainless-steel flexible coil spring wire
Polishing
Diamonds of unknown origin will be provided and set into the bracelet (first article only).
CLASSIFICATION
The applicable subheading for Style BB131-S, both with and without the diamonds, will be 7113.19.5091,
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States, which provides for “Articles of jewelry and parts thereof,
of precious metal or of metal clad with precious metal: Of other precious metal, whether or not plated or clad
with precious metal: Other: Other.”
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN
The marking statute, section 304 of the 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 United States 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 an ultimate purchaser in the United States the
English name of the country of origin of the article. Congressional intent in enacting 19 U.S.C. § 1304 was
that the ultimate purchaser should be able to know by an inspection of the markings on the imported goods
the country of which the good is the product. “The evident purpose is to mark the goods so at the time of
purchase the ultimate purchaser may, by knowing where the goods were produced, be able to buy or refuse to
buy them, if such marking should influence his will.” United States v. Friedlaender & Co., 27 C.C.P.A. 297
at 302 (1940).
Section 134.1(b), CBP Regulations (19 CFR 134.1(b)), defines “country of origin” 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 the marking laws and regulations. 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 sections
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 and apparel goods which are subject to
the provisions of 19 CFR 102.21. See 19 CFR 102.11.
Applied in sequential order, 19 CFR 102.11(a) provides 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 set out in § 102.20 and satisfied any other applicable requirements of that section, and all other
applicable requirements of these rules are satisfied.
Since the bracelets are produced in Mexico from United States origin gold and set with diamonds of
unknown origin, the country of origin cannot be determined by 19 C.F.R. § 102.11(a)(1) and (a)(2). CBP then
turns to 19 C.F.R. § 102.11(a)(3) to determine whether the bracelets produced in Mexico undergo the
applicable change in tariff classification.
“Foreign material” is defined in 19 C.F.R. § 102.1(e) as “a material whose country of origin as determined
under these rules is not the same country as the country in which the good is produced.”
The bracelets are classified under heading 7113, HTSUS, and 19 C.F.R. § 102.20 provides that for articles
classified in headings 7113 through 7118 the applicable tariff shift requirement is “A change to subheading
7113.11 through 7115.90 from any other subheading, including another subheading within that group.:
Because the gold grain of US origin is classified under heading 7108, HTSUS; the stainless steel spring of
US origin is classified under chapter 73; and the diamonds of unknown origin are classified under heading
7108, HTSUS, they undergo the requisite tariff shift set forth in 19 C.F.R. § 102.20. As the foreign materials
undergo the applicable tariff shift pursuant to 19 C.F.R. § 102.20, in accordance with 19 C.F.R. §
102.11(a)(3), the country of origin for the bracelet is Mexico.
USMCA
The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (“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)); . . . .
In reviewing the bracelet without diamonds, GN 11(b)(i) does not apply as it is not wholly obtained or
produced entirely in Mexico. However, GN11(b)ii is applicable because it is a good produced in Mexico
from United States origin materials. Therefore, pursuant to GN 11(b)(ii), the bracelet without diamonds is
eligible for preferential tariff treatment under the USMCA.
Regarding the bracelet with diamonds, neither GN 11(b)(i) or (b)(ii) apply, as neither are “wholly obtained or
produced entirely” in Mexico, nor are they “produced entirely in Mexico, exclusively from originating
materials.” CBP turns to GN 11(b)(iii) to determine whether the bracelets with diamonds are eligible for
preferential tariff treatment under the USMCA.
GN 11(b)(iii) provides that a good is eligible for preferential tariff treatment under the USMCA if it is a
“good produced in [Mexico] using non-originating materials, if the good satisfies all applicable requirements
set forth in this note (including in the provisions of subdivision (o)).” GN 11(o) provides for the applicable
tariff shift requirements.
For products of Chapter 71, GN 11(o) states that the applicable tariff shift is “A change to headings 7113
through 7118 from any heading outside that group.”
The non-originating materials for the bracelets are the diamonds of unknown origin. The diamonds are
classified under heading 7108, HTSUS. By application of GN 11(o), the non-originating materials undergo
the applicable tariff shift. Therefore, pursuant to GN 11(b)(iii), bracelets with diamonds are eligible for
preferential tariff treatment under the USMCA.
TRADE REMEDIES
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 Mexico are not
subject to reciprocal tariffs. At the time of entry, you must report Chapter 99 heading applicable to your
product classification, i.e. 9903.01.27, in addition to subheading 7113.19.5090, HTSUS, listed above.
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).
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 Vikki Lazaro at [email protected].
Sincerely,
(for)
Evan Conceicao
Designated Official Performing the Duties of the Division Director
National Commodity Specialist Division