OT:RR:NC:N1:102
Porfirio Waters
TradeFlex Supply Chain Solutions LLC
6620 South 33rd Street, Building J
McAllen, TX 78503
RE: The country of origin and eligibility of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement of a blower
assembly
Dear Mr. Waters:
In your letter dated November 20, 2025, on behalf of your client, Aspina Incorporated, you inquire whether
the assembly is eligible for duty free treatment under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement
(USMCA). You also request a country of origin ruling for marking purposes.
The product at issue is a fan blower assembly, item number IDRF-3432-504-M. The assembly consists of a
centrifugal fan and an electric motor encased in top and bottom housings. The assembly is designed to be
used in Continuous Positive Airway Pressure machines.
We note that USMCA analysis requires a tariff classification of the product. Based on the information
submitted, the applicable subheading for the assembly will be subheading 8414.59.6560, Harmonized Tariff
Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for Air or vacuum pumps, air or other gas
compressors and fans; ventilating or recycling hoods incorporating a fan, whether or not fitted with filters;
gas-tight biological safety cabinets, whether or not fitted with filters; parts thereof: Fans: Other: Other: Other:
Other: Centrifugal. The general rate of duty is 2.3 percent ad valorem.
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 Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (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 your letter, you explain the final assembly of the product occurs in Mexico using components from Japan,
Mexico, the United States and China. Since the subject fan blower assembly contains non-originating
materials, it is not considered a good wholly obtained or produced entirely in a USMCA country under GN
11(b)(i), nor is the product produced exclusively from originating materials per GN 11(b)(ii). Thus, we must
determine whether the product qualifies under GN 11(b)(iii) and GN 11(o). The applicable tariff shift rule in
GN 11(o) for products classifiable under subheading 8414.59, HTSUS, requires a change to subheadings
8414.59 through 8414.80 from any other heading.
The housings and the impeller of the assembly, which are non-originating components, are classified within
heading 8414. See New York Rulings N327096, dated August 10, 2022, and N327121, dated August 8, 2022.
As a result, the requisite tariff shift rule has not been met, and the assembly is not considered an originating
good under the USMCA. Thus, the fan blower assembly is not eligible for preferential treatment upon
importation into the United States.
In regard to marking, section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), provides that
unless excepted, every article of foreign origin 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 the 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 marking on the imported goods the country of
which the goods is the product. The evident purpose is to mark the goods so that 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.” See United States v. Friedlander & Co., 27 C.C.P.A. 297, 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 Part 102.20 and satisfies any other applicable requirements of that section, and all other applicable
requirements of these rules are satisfied.
Here, the fan blower assembly is neither “wholly obtained or produced” nor “produced exclusively from
domestic materials.” Consequently, paragraphs (a)(1) and (a)(2) cannot be used to determine the country of
origin of the assembly unit, and paragraph (a)(3) must be applied to determine the origin of the finished
article. As mentioned above, the subject assembly is classified under subheading 8414.59. The tariff shift
requirement in Section 102.20 for a good classified within this subheading requires a change to subheading
8414.10 through 8414.80 from any other subheading, including another subheading within that group.
In recognizing the tariff shift can occur from any other subheading, including another subheading within that
group, the non-originating material of the assembly satisfies the requisite tariff shift rule. Accordingly, the
country of origin of the fan blower assembly for the purpose of marking is Mexico.
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 Sandra Martinez at [email protected].
Sincerely,
(for)
Evan Conceicao
Designated Official Performing the Duties of the Division Director
National Commodity Specialist Division