CLA-2-90:OT:RR:NC:N3:135
Frank Kaliner
Avanos Medical Sales, LLC
5405 Windward Pkwy, Suite 100
Alpharetta, GA 30004
RE: The tariff classification, country of origin, and United States-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement
(USMCA) eligibility of a conventional radio frequency probe
Dear Mr. Kaliner:
In your letter dated December 3, 2025, you requested a ruling for the tariff classification, country of origin
for marking purposes, and eligibility of a conventional radio frequency probe under the USMCA. Additional
information was provided by email dated December 18, 2025.
The product under consideration is a conventional radio frequency (RF) probe. It consists of a thermocouple,
a Radel handle, a three-conductor cable, a Radel cap, a four-pin connector, heat shrinks, and a plastic
protective sheath. The RF probe is a component of an RF ablation system, a pain management system that
uses heat from RF energy to disrupt pain signals from specific nerves. The RF ablation system consists
mainly of an 80-watt RF generator, cables, probes, and cannulas. The system works by inserting the desired
cannula into the patient’s body. The cannula is then replaced by a probe that is placed adjacent to the nerve
transmitting the pain. The generator produces a high-frequency radio wave current that is sent through the
wires into the probe. The radio frequency waves will activate the ions present, resulting in friction and heat.
This process, called ionic heating, will burn the targeted nerve. The lesion prevents the pain signals from
flowing through that nerve for up to twelve months.
The process of making the RF probe will take a raw material hypo-tube, change it into a thermocouple , and
then further transform it into the RF probe.
The hypo-tubes are a raw material from the United States or South Korea used to make the finished RF
probe. The purchased hypo-tubes are seamless T304 stainless steel and come in various lengths and diameter
s. The various tube lengths are shipped in pre-cut lengths with deburred “squared off ends.” The tubes are
considered unfinished and not coated.
The hypo-tubes are imported into Mexico and then processed into a thermocouple subassembly. A
thermocouple is two dissimilar metals, joined at one end, to measure temperature. This subassembly process
includes tinning, ultrasonic washing, and laser welding. Tinning is a specialized process of coating a portion
of the hypodermic tube with silver solder ribbon, which is sourced from the United States.
After soldering, the tube is then washed in a specialized ultrasonic washing machine. Next, a constanta n wire
made in the United States is inserted into the tube and laser welded into a dome. A constantan wire is a
copper-nickel alloy wire that is used as a heating element in the probe. Prior to shipping to Mexico, the
constantan wire is coated with a red polyimide insulated coating. The dome is formed as a result of the laser
welding between the stainless steel hypo-tube end and the constantan wire protrusion. The dome covers the
end of the tube that will be ultimately used on a patient. The preceding processes describe the changes from a
raw hypo-tube into a new thermocouple subassembly. The subassembly consists of the hypo-tube (outer
shell), capped with a laser welded dome, and a constantan wire that runs through the middle of the hypo-tube.
However, the other end of this subassembly remains unfinished.
The final processes will finish the RF probe, which is made from the thermocouple subassembly. These
processes include attaching the thermocouple subassembly to a handle, adding multiple wires, and attaching
an electronic connector that will allow connection to the radio frequency generator. The thermocouple sub
assembly is attached to the Radel handle using an epoxy adhesive. The Radel handle is molded in Mexico
from a plastic resin. The plastic sheath is made in the United States and is used to protect the RF probe during
shipping and until used by a clinician. Within the Radel handle, the thermocouple is attached to a three-wire,
insulated cable. The cable, without any connectors, is imported into Mexico from a United States or China
manufacturer. The other end of the cable is connected to a four-pin connector. You state that the country of
origin of the connector is Hungary. The connectors are attached to the wires using U.S. rosin core solder. The
finished product is now a Standard RF probe that will connect to the RF generator (not included). The probe
is packaged and shipped to the US.
Classification:
You suggest the tariff classification of the RF probe as a cannula under subheading 9018.39.0050,
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). We disagree. The RF probe is dissimilar to a
cannula in terms of its composition, use, and function. It will be classified elsewhere.
The applicable subheading for the RF probe will be 9018.90.7580, HTSUS, which provides for “Instruments
and appliances used in medical, surgical, dental or veterinary sciences, including scintigraphic apparatus,
other electro-medical apparatus and sight-testing instruments; parts and accessories thereof: Other
instruments and appliances and parts and accessories thereof: Other: Electro-medical instruments and
appliances and parts and accessories thereof: Other: Other: Other.” The general rate of duty will be free.
The 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/.
This ruling does not address the applicability of any additional duties, taxes, fees, exactions and/or other
charges, which may apply to the goods discussed herein. This includes, but is not limited to, tariffs and other
duties as provided for in Subchapter III to Chapter 99, HTSUS. Thus, for example, in addition to the
classification stated above, the merchandise covered by this ruling may also need to be reported with either
the Chapter 99 provision under which an additional tariff applies or one of the Chapter 99 provisions
covering exceptions to such tariffs.
For further information to assist with the importation process, please refer to the frequently updated Cargo
Systems Messaging Service (CSMS) messages at
https://www.cbp.gov/trade/automated/cargo-systems-messaging-service and Frequently Asked Questions on
the Trade Remedy/IEEPA page at
https://www.cbp.gov/trade/programs-administration/trade-remedies/IEEPA-FAQ.
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));
In this case, the hypo-tube component is sourced from the United States or South Korea. The Radel handle
and flux are made in Mexico. The silver solder ribbon, constantan wire, Radel cap, solder, solder flux,
adhesive, and plastic sheath are made in the United States. The connector is made in Hungary. The cable is a
product of the United States or China. The country of origin of the heat shrinks is unknown. Since the RF
probe 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). As previously
noted, the RF probe is classified under subheading 9018.90.7580, HTSUS. The applicable rule of origin for
goods classified under subheading 9018.90.7580, HTSUS, is in GN 11(o)/ Chapter 90/42, HTSUS, which
provides “A change to subheading 9018.90 from any other heading.”
As stated in your letter each non-originating component used in the production of the RF probe is classified
in headings other than heading 9018, the requisite tariff shift rule is met. Therefore, based on the facts
provided, the RF probe described above is deemed an originating good and qualifies for USMCA preferential
tariff treatment, because it will meet the requirements of HTSUS General Note 11(b)(iii). It will therefore be
entitled to preferential tariff treatment under the USMCA upon compliance with all applicable laws,
regulations, and agreements.
Country of Origin 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
§§ 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. See 19 C.F.R. § 102.11.
Applied in sequential order, 19 CFR Part 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.
The RF probe is neither “wholly obtained or produced” nor “produced exclusively from domestic materials.”
Therefore, paragraphs (a)(1) and (a)(2) cannot be used to determine the country of origin of the RF probe,
and paragraph (a)(3) must be applied next to determine the origin of the finished article. The RF probe is
classified under subheading 9018.90.7580, HTSUS. The relevant tariff shift requirement in Part 102.20 for
the RF probe at issue states:
A change to subheading 9018.90 from any other subheading, except from subheading 9001.90 or
synthetic rubber classified in heading 4002 when resulting from a simple assembly; …
In this case, the foreign materials incorporated in the RF probe all meet the tariff shift. As a result, Part
102.11(a)(3) applies and the RF probe will be considered a product of Mexico for purposes of marking.
Regarding your request for the country of origin determination for the thermocouple subassembly performed
in Mexico, since it is processed in Mexico and is not imported into the United States, you may seek a country
of origin ruling from Mexican Customs authority.
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 Fei Chen at [email protected].
Sincerely,
(for)
Evan Conceicao
Designated Official Performing the Duties of the Division Director
National Commodity Specialist Division