CLA-2 OT:RR:CTF:FTM H264995 GaK
Theresa White
Natracare, LLC.
3620 W. 10th Street, Unit B
Greeley, CO 80634-1852
RE: Reconsideration of NY N247578; Classification of tampons for feminine sanitary protection, from Germany
Dear Ms. White:
This is in reply to your letter received on March 11, 2014, in which you requested reconsideration of New York Ruling Letter (“NY”) N247578, dated November 13, 2013, which pertains to the tariff classification of tampons for feminine sanitary protection under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (“HTSUS”). In that ruling, the National Commodity Specialist Division (“NCSD”) determined that the product was classified in subheading 9619.00.21, HTSUS, which provides for “[s]anitary towels (pads) and tampons, diapers and diaper liners for babies and similar articles, of any material: Of textile wadding: Of cotton.”
In your reconsideration request, you assert that the tampons are constructed solely of 100% cellulose absorbent material derived from organic cotton and that it is correctly classified under subheading 9619.00.15, HTSUS, which provides for “[s]anitary towels (pads) and tampons, diapers and diaper liners for babies and similar articles, of any material: Of paper, cellulose wadding or webs of cellulose fibers.” We disagree. In your original ruling request for the tariff classification of tampons, you provided ten tampons marked “regular” and eight tampons marked “super.” The samples were sent to the U.S. Customs & Border Protection (“CBP”) Laboratory for analysis. In CBP Laboratory Report No. NY20140534, dated September 23, 2014, the CBP Laboratory reported that the “regular” and “super” tampons are “composed of textile wadding material made of 100% cotton staple fibers.” Therefore, the tampons are correctly classified as tampons of textile wadding under subheading 9619.00.21, HTSUS.
The Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System Explanatory Notes (“ENs”) constitute the official interpretation of the Harmonized System at the international level. While not legally binding, the ENs provide a commentary on the scope of each heading of the HTS and are thus useful in ascertaining the proper classification of the merchandise. See T.D. 89-90, 54 Fed. Reg. 35127, 35128 (August 23, 1989). The manufacturing process of the tampons stated in your reconsideration request meets the definition of wadding of textile materials as defined in the ENs. You described the manufacturing process as follows: “[t]he cotton fibre is carded and formed into a continuous ‘tape’ of cotton fibre by compression. The cotton ‘tape’ is then cut into length and compressed/rolled directly in the tampon production machine.” The ENs to heading 56.01 states that wadding is made by “superimposing several layers of carded or aid-laid textile fibres one on the other, and then compressing them in order to increase the cohesion of the fibres. Wadding is something lightly punched in order to increase the cohesion of the fibres and, in some cases, to fix the layer of wadding on a support of woven or other textile fabrics.”
Based on the CBP Laboratory analysis of the tampons and the manufacturing process, the tampons are made of textile wadding, not cellulose wadding. Therefore, we find that the tampons for feminine sanitary protection are correctly classified under subheading 9619.00.21, HTSUS, as “[s]anitary towels (pads) and tampons, diapers and diaper liners for babies and similar articles, of any material: Of textile wadding: Of cotton.”
We therefore affirm NY N247578, dated November 13, 2013.
Sincerely,
Myles B. Harmon, Director
Commercial and Trade Facilitation Division