MAR-2 RR:CR:SM 561028 KSG
John N. Politis, Esq.
Politis & Politis
865 S. Figueroa Street
Suite 2308
Los Angeles, California 90017
RE: 19 CFR 134.45; Indonesia; Dominican Republic; jewelry
Dear Mr. Politis:
This is in response to your letter dated June 5, 1998,
requesting a country of origin ruling on behalf of
Oroamerica Inc. regarding the marking of imported gold
bracelets and necklaces made in the Dominican Republic and
in Indonesia.
FACTS:
This case involves gold bracelets and necklaces made in
the Dominican Republic and in Indonesia. The chains have a
clasp on them that bear the country of origin marking. You
state that there is insufficient space on the clasps to
fully spell out "Indonesia" and "Dominican Republic;" five
or six readable letters could be die sunk in the clasp at
most. Further, even if the country of origin marking could
be die stamped in full on the clasps, the letters would be
so small that it would be difficult to read.
Therefore, you propose to mark the jewelry with the
abbreviations "INDO" and "DOM REP." In the alternative, you
request an exemption from marking pursuant to 19 CFR
134.32(a) because you contend that the products are too
small to be marked.
ISSUE:
What are the country of origin marking requirements for
bracelets and necklaces imported from the Dominican Republic
and from Indonesia?
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
Section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1304),
as amended, provides that unless excepted, every article of
foreign origin imported into the U.S. 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 U.S. the English name of the country of origin of the
article.
Part 134, Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 134),
implements the country of origin marking requirements of 19
U.S.C. 1304. Section 134.45(b), Customs Regulations (19 CFR
134.45(b)), provides that abbreviations of country names
"which unmistakably indicate the name of a country ... are
acceptable. Variant spellings which clearly indicate the
English name of the country of origin such as "Brasil" for
"Brazil" and "Italie" for "Italy," are acceptable."
The Court of Customs Appeals held in American
Burtonizing Co. v. United States, 13 Ct. Cust. Appls 652
(1926), that the purpose of the country of origin marking
law:
was to require a marking such as would be
understood by purchasers of foreign-made goods as
giving definite and reliable information as to the
country of origin. It is not reasonable to
suppose that Congress, by use of the word
indicate' meant only that words used should hint
at the country of origin. The object sought to be
obtained by the legislature could best be obtained
by an indication which was clear, plain, and
unambiguous and which did more than merely hint at
the country of origin. We do not think that
Congress intended that American purchasers,
consumers, or users of foreign-made goods should
be required to speculate, investigate or interpret
in order that they might ascertain the country of
origin.
The court then ruled that the French word "Aisne" was
not an acceptable country of origin marking.
Customs has held that the abbreviation "IN" for
encapsulated integrated circuits made in Indonesia is not
acceptable. See Headquarters Ruling Letter ("HRL") 734443,
dated June 3, 1992. Customs held in HRL 559931, dated July
11, 1996, that the abbreviation "RF" for Russian Federation
was not acceptable. In this ruling, Customs stated its view
that "most abbreviations do not unmistakably identify the
country of origin and are therefore unacceptable. The
ultimate purchaser should be able to ascertain the country
of origin at a glance without any guesswork...."
In Treasury Decision ("T.D.") 93-17, dated March 23,
1993, Customs considered what markings would be acceptable
for goods imported from the Czech Republic and the Slovak
Republic. Customs looked at the U.S. Department of State
list for the long form name and short form name for the new
independent countries to reach its conclusion. The U.S.
State Department list of Independent States in the World as
of August 1, 1997, lists "Indonesia" as the short form name
and the "Republic of Indonesia" as the long form name for
Indonesia. The list stated that "Dominican Republic" as the
short form name and "Commonwealth of Dominica" as the long
form name for the Dominican Republic. The abbreviations
"INDO" and "DOM REP." do not unmistakably indicate the name
of either country to an ultimate purchaser without any
guesswork and are neither the recognized short form names or
long form names for those countries. Therefore, we find
these abbreviations to be unacceptable.
In HRL 735356, dated March 21, 1994, Customs approved
the use of hangtags to mark imported jewelry because it was
difficult to read the country of origin that was die stamped
on the clasps. There are other rulings in which Customs
approved the use of hangtags to mark jewelry. See HRL
734481, dated August 19, 1992; C.S.D. 79-47, dated August 7,
1978; and C.S.D. 79-379, dated April 9, 1979. There has
been no showing in this case that the country of origin of
the imported jewelry could not be marked on hangtags. We
find that there has been no showing that the imported
jewelry is incapable of being marked; the imported jewelry
could be marked with hangtags securely affixed that bear its
country of origin. Furthermore, the certification and
verification procedures in 19 CFR 134.26 shall be used if
the importer or subsequent transferee intend to repack or
manipulate the jewelry, to ensure that the country of origin
marking remains on the jewelry until it reaches the ultimate
purchaser.
HOLDING:
The abbreviations "INDO" and "DOM REP." for bracelets
and necklaces imported from Indonesia and the Dominican
Republic are not acceptable.
The imported bracelets and necklaces are not excepted
from country of origin marking. The imported jewelry can be
marked with hangtags that indicate its country of origin.
If the jewelry will be repacked or manipulated, the
certification procedures in 19 CFR 134.26 shall be followed.
A copy of this ruling letter should be attached to the
entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is
entered. If the documents have been filed without a copy,
this ruling should be brought to the attention of the
Customs officer handling the transaction.
Sincerely,
John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division