MAR 2-05 CO:R:C:V 735033 LR
District Director of Customs
El Paso, Texas
RE: Internal Advice Request 19/93; Appraisement Entry;
Unknown Country of Origin
Dear Sir:
This is in response to your memorandum dated March 3, 1993,
forwarding a request for Internal Advice submitted by General
Electric Company ("GE").
FACTS:
GE's Aerospace Division has contracted with Elamex, S.A., a
Mexican firm, for assembly of kits of electronic components into
circuit boards and other subassemblies. The kits are gathered in
the United States from domestic and imported components and shipped
to one of Elamex's facilities in Mexico. Upon export to Mexico,
the imported components of the kits are identified simply as
"foreign" on the Shippers's Export Declaration. Completed
subassemblies are imported from Mexico under a marking waiver
approved by your district.
On occasion, kits are returned to the United States from
Mexico in unassembled form due to changes in production schedules
or in order to remedy shipment of the wrong parts to Elamex. GE
advises that the returned, unassembled piece parts also are subject
to a marking waiver approved by your district.
GE indicates that unassembled kits frequently contain as many
as 177 separate piece parts, which consists primarily of commodity
electronic components. GE frequently purchases these commodities
from distributors, who have both foreign and domestic sources for
the parts, and in many cases, multiple foreign sources. Because
the parts often are exempt from individual marking, the country of
origin identification is lost when they are placed in inventory
bins for eventual gathering into a kit to be assembled in Mexico.
Thus, on those occasions when kits are returned from Mexico in
unassembled form, the country of origin of the parts is not readily
ascertainable, and can be ascertained, if at all, only with the
expenditure of considerable time and expense. For this reason, GE
would like to identify on the entry documents, the origin of non-
U.S. components returned in unassembled kits by use of a generic
designation of "foreign" or by listing the source countries in
which the components may have originated.
ISSUE:
Whether GE may identify on the entry documents the origin of
non-U.S. components returned in unassembled kits by use of a
generic designation of "foreign" or by listing the source countries
in which the components may have originated.
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
19 U.S.C. 1481 provides that all invoices of merchandise to be
imported into the United States shall set forth various information
including facts deemed necessary to a proper appraisement,
examination, and classification of the merchandise that the
Secretary of the Treasury may require. Section 141.86(a)(10),
Customs Regulations (19 CFR 141.86(a)(10)), provides that the
country of origin is required on each invoice of imported
merchandise.
Special entry procedures are provided in 19 CFR Part 143.
Entry by appraisement is covered in 19 CFR Part 143, Subpart B.
Such procedure is generally used when the importer has insufficient
information as to the value of the imported articles and is unable
to obtain such information or to determine the value of the
articles for the purpose of making formal entry thereof. In such
case, the importer shall present any bills or statements of cost
relating to the merchandise which maybe in his possession along
with a declaration that he has no other information as to the value
of the articles and is unable to obtain such information or to
determine the value of the articles for the purpose of making
formal entry thereof. See 19 CFR 143.13
By memorandum dated November 23, 1993 (copy enclosed), the
Chief, Entry Rulings Branch, determined that appraisement entry
procedures may also be used when the importer does not have
sufficient information regarding country of origin for the purpose
of making a formal entry. Specifically, where GE cannot identify
the country of origin of specified merchandise for the reasons
specified above and certain conditions are met, an appraisement
entry may be appropriate. The district director must be satisfied
that: 1) the marking requirements will be complied with; 2) none
of the goods are subject to antidumping or countervailing duties;
3) the merchandise is not from a column 2 country; and 4) the
merchandise is not subject to quota. These conditions are
discussed in more detail in the November 23, 1993 memorandum. Use
of the appraisement entry procedures would enable GE to use a
generic designation of "foreign" or to list the source countries in
which the components may have originated on its entry
documentation.
There is no provision for a blanket approval of appraisement
entry procedures. Application for an entry by appraisement shall
be made on the entry summary, Customs Form 7501. 19 CFR 143.12.
Except in situations specified in 19 CFR 143.11(a), which do not
apply here, each entry by appraisement shall be allowed only with
the approval of Headquarters. Each request for such approval shall
be filed with the district director and shall state in detail the
reasons for the request. 19 CFR 143.11(b). Therefore, each time
GE wants to use an appraisement entry because it cannot determine
the country of origin of its goods for the reasons specified above,
it must follow these procedures.
HOLDING:
GE may apply for approval of an appraisement entry on
specified merchandise for which it cannot ascertain the country of
origin for the reasons specified above. Upon application, if you
are satisfied that the conditions specified in the attached
memorandum are satisfied, and Headquarters approves such request,
GE may identify on the entry documents the origin of non-U.S.
components returned in unassembled kits by use of a generic
designation of "foreign" or by listing the source countries in
which the components may have originated.
The Office of Regulations and Rulings will take steps to make
this decision available to Customs personnel via the Customs
Rulings Module in ACS and the public via the Diskette Subscription
Service, Lexis, Freedom of Information Act and other public access
channels 60 days from the date of this decision.
Please provide GE with a copy of this decision and the
November 23, 1993 memorandum.
Sincerely,
John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division
Enclosure