MAR-2-05 CO:R:C:V 734790 ER
Mr. Jacques Fournier
President
Importation Jacques Fournier Ltee.
1060, 140e Rue Est
P.O. Box 33
St-Georges, Comte Beauce
P.Quebec, Canada G5Y 5C4
RE: Country of Origin Marking Requirements for Dolls; Toys;
Hangtags; Conspicuousness; 19 CFR 134.46 and 19 CFR 134.47.
Dear Mr. Fournier:
This is in response to your letter of July 2, 1992, in which
you request a ruling concerning the country of origin marking
requirements for certain dolls imported from Canada. A sample
doll was submitted with your request.
FACTS:
The subject doll is approximately two feet in height and is
outfitted in a dress, petticoat, shoes, socks and a straw hat. A
durable cardboard hangtag is attached to the doll's dress by
means of a plastic tie. To remove the hangtag, the hangtag would
have to be cut or torn off the tie or the tie would have to be
cut away from the dress.
The hangtag measures approximately 4" x 6", is folded down
the middle to form a four-paged pamphlet and displays printed
information on each of the four pages. Such information
includes, on the front page of the hangtag, the words "Germany
Style". Additionally, the name and address of the Canadian
distributor appear on the inside right and rear pages of the
hangtag. The words "Made in China" and "Fabrique en Chine"
appear on a sticky label immediately below the Canadian
distributor's name and address on the last page and in letters of
equal size to those making up the address.
The words "Made in China" are also stamped in ink on the
back of the doll's torso in letters of greater size than those in
the Canadian distributor's address which appears on a
"Certificate of Originality" sewn on to the doll's torso
immediately above the stamped-on country of origin. To fully see
the stamped-on marking, the back of the doll's dress must be
opened. For purposes of this ruling, we will assume that the
doll is sold in this manner and is not otherwise packaged.
ISSUE:
Is the doll correctly marked with country of origin?
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
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 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.
By enacting 19 U.S.C. 1304, Congress intended to ensure that the
ultimate purchaser would be able to know by inspecting the
marking on the imported goods the country of which the goods are
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. United States v.
Friedlaender & Co., 27 C.C.P.A. 297, 302 C.A.D. 104 (1940).
Part 134, Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134), implements the
country of origin marking requirements and exceptions of 19
U.S.C. 1304. As provided in section 134.41, Customs Regulations
(19 CFR 134.41), the country of origin marking is considered to
be conspicuous if the ultimate purchaser in the United States is
able to find the marking easily and read it without strain.
Relevant to your inquiry is whether the words "Germany
style" appearing on the front of the hangtag and the
distributor's Canadian address appearing twice on the hangtag and
once on the certificate of originality, described above, are
potentially misleading to the ultimate purchaser as to the actual
country of origin of the doll. In cases where a reference to a
locality other than the country of origin appears on imported
merchandise special marking requirements set forth in sections
134.46 and 134.47, Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.46 and 19 CFR
134.47) may be triggered. The purpose of both provisions is the
same, namely to prevent the ultimate purchaser from being misled
or deceived when the name of a country or place other than the
country of origin appears on an imported article or its
container. The critical difference between the two provisions is
that 19 CFR 134.46 requires that the name of the actual country
of origin appear "in close proximity" to such words and in
lettering of at least comparable size. By contrast, 19 CFR
134.47 is less stringent, providing that when as part of a trade
name, trademark or souvenir mark, the name of a location other
than the country of origin appears, the name of the actual
country of origin must appear in close proximity or "in some
other conspicuous location". In other words, the latter
provision triggers only a general standard of conspicuousness.
However, if either provision is triggered, the name of the
country of origin must be preceded by "Made in", "Product of", or
other similar words.
In HQ 722064 (August 3, 1983), Customs ruled that 19 CFR
134.47 would apply only if the word "Paris" was part of the
registered trade name. Otherwise, 19 CFR 134.46 would be
applicable. In the instant case, the words "Germany style" are
not part of a registered trade name, and neither is the
distributor's address. Accordingly, 19 CFR 134.47 does not apply
and the only remaining question is whether the presence of such
words triggers the provisions of 19 CFR 134.46.
Customs has often distinguished those special cases where
reference to a country or a locality other than the country of
origin on an imported article is found unlikely to confuse the
ultimate purchaser as to the country of origin of the article.
For example, in HQ 723604 (November 3, 1983) and HQ 712013
(January 16, 1980), Customs determined that the letters "USA"
displayed on imported men's bikini-style swimming trunks did not
trigger the requirements of 19 CFR 134.46 because such marking
was used as a symbol or decoration and would not be reasonably
construed as indicating the country of origin of the article on
which it appeared. In HQ 733259 (August 3, 1990), patches naming
locations other than the country of origin and sewn onto the
front of a child's knit top were found to be decorative and an
integral part of the design. Since the garment was conspicuously
marked in the center of the neck by means of a sewn-in label in
satisfaction of the requirements of 19 U.S.C. 1304, 19 CFR 134.46
was not triggered. In HQ 733695 (January 15, 1991), the words
"Bonjour Paris", on the rivets of blue jeans that were
conspicuously marked by means of a fabric label sewn into the
waistband of the jeans, did not trigger the requirements of 19
CFR 134.46 and so no additional marking was necessary.
Similarly here, Customs finds that the words "Germany style"
appearing on the front of the hangtag are unlikely to lead the
ultimate purchaser to the erroneous conclusion that the
merchandise is made in Germany. The other information appearing
on the front of the hangtag is in larger lettering and identifies
the doll as one in a series of dolls which make up a
"collection". Since the doll is outfitted in a traditional
German dress, the ultimate purchaser will know that the words
"Germany style" refer to the garb of the doll and not to its
country of origin.
However, the presence of the Canadian distributor's address
does trigger the requirements of 19 CFR 134.46. We have
previously ruled that in order to satisfy the close proximity
requirement of this regulation, the country of origin marking
must appear on the same side(s) or surface)s) on which the name
of the locality other than the country of origin appears. (See
HQ 734232 (November 20, 1991) citing to HQ 733618 (July 26, 1990)
concerning soccer balls; HQ 732191 (April 27, 1990) concerning
paint brush sets; HQ 733084 (March 19, 1990) concerning keywound
alarm clocks; HQ 708994 (April 24, 1978) concerning product
labels.) Thus, for the hangtag in this case to meet the marking
requirements of 19 CFR 134.46, the country of origin marking --
"Made in China" -- must be further indicated on the inside right
page where the reference to the Canadian distributor is located,
as well as maintained at its present locations on the rear page
of the hangtag and on the back torso of the doll below the
certificate of originality.
HOLDING:
To comply with the country of origin marking requirements
of section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C.
1304), the country of origin marking, "Made in China", must
appear legibly, conspicuously and permanently on the inside right
page of the hangtag as well as maintained in its present
locations.
Sincerely,
John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division