OT:RR:CTF:CPMMA H320467 ACA
Mr. John M. Foote
Kelley Drye & Warren LLP
3050 K Street NW
Washington, DC 20007
RE: Affirmation of NY N319093; Classification of a "Bio Bidet"
Dear Mr. Foote:
This letter is in response to your correspondence, dated June 11, 2021, in which you request reconsideration of New York Ruling Letter (NY) N319093, dated May 14, 2021 (Reconsideration Request). NY N319093, which was issued to Bemis Manufacturing Company, involves the tariff classification of the Bio Bidet under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). In NY N319093, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) classified the subject merchandise under subheading 3922.90.00, HTSUS, which provides for "Baths, shower-baths, sinks, wash-basins, bidets, lavatory pans, seats and covers, flushing cisterns and similar sanitary ware, of plastics: Other." In your Reconsideration Request, you assert that this classification is incorrect, and that the Bio Bidet is correctly classified in subheading 8424.89.90, HTSUS, which provides for "Mechanical appliances (whether or not hand-operated) for projecting, dispersing or spraying liquids or powders; fire extinguishers, whether or not charged; spray guns and similar appliances; steam or sand blasting machines and similar jet projecting machines; parts thereof: Other appliances: Other." Having reviewed NY N319093 and determined that it is correct, we are affirming NY N319093 for the reasons set forth below.
The Bio Bidet at issue was described in NY N319093, as follows:
The Bio Bidet is a self cleaning [sic] nonelectric dual nozzle mechanical bidet. The hand operated bidet can easily attach to any toilet. It is made of plastic and metal materials. Once attached, the operator must turn on the water supply so that water flows both to the toilet tank and the bidet attachment. There are two nozzles for controlling front and back wash and multiple water pressure applications.
Descriptions of the Bio Bidet included in your Reconsideration Request are consistent with those set forth above.
Classification under the HTSUS is in accordance with the General Rules of Interpretation (GRIs). GRI 1 provides that the classification of goods will be determined according to the terms of the headings of the tariff schedule and any relative section or chapter notes. In the event that the goods cannot be classified solely on the basis of GRI 1, and if the headings and legal notes do not otherwise require, the remaining GRIs 2 through 6 will then be applied in order. GRI 1 makes it clear that "titles of Sections, Chapters and sub-Chapters are provided for ease of reference only; for legal purposes, classification shall be determined by the terms of the headings and any relative Section or Chapter Notes." If the goods are prima facie classifiable under two or more headings, we apply GRI 3(a), which establishes that the "heading which provides the most specific description shall be preferred to headings providing a more general description."
The Explanatory Notes (ENs), although neither dispositive nor legally binding, provide a commentary on the scope of each heading of the HTSUS, and are the official interpretation of the Harmonized System at the international level. See T.D. 89-80, 54 Fed. Reg. 35127, 35128 (Aug. 23, 1989).
Heading 3922, HTSUS, provides for "Baths, shower-baths, sinks, wash-basins, bidets, lavatory pans, seats and covers, flushing cisterns and similar sanitary ware, of plastics." (emphasis added). The HTSUS does not provide a definition of a bidet; therefore, we construe these terms in accordance with their common commercial meanings, ascertained by reference to "dictionaries, scientific authorities, other reliable information sources," "lexicographic and other materials," and the pertinent ENs. C.J. Tower & Sons v. United States, 673 F.2d 1268, 1271 (C.C.P.A. 1982); Simod America Corp. v. United States, 872 F.2d 1572, 1576 (Fed. Cir. 1989); GRK Can., Ltd. v. United States, 761 F.3d 1354, 1357 (Fed. Cir. 2014). The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines a bidet as: "a bathroom fixture used especially for bathing the external genitals and the anal region"[1]; and the online dictionary-Dictionary.com-defines a bidet as: "a low, basinlike bathroom fixture that provides a water stream for bathing the genital and anal areas, or a device attached to a standard toilet that performs the same function."[2] The ENs to heading 3922, HTSUS, do not provide a definition of a bidet, but state that the heading "covers fittings designed to be permanently fixed in place, in houses, etc., normally by connection to the water or sewage systems. It also covers other sanitary ware of similar dimensions and uses, such as portable bidets, baby baths and camping toilets."
The subject merchandise in this case is designed to be fixed to the toilet in a dwelling and connected to the dwelling's existing water system to bathe the external genitals and the anal region. The definition of a bidet is not contingent upon whether the product itself contains a toilet or toilet seat; rather, the bidet can be designed to attach to a toilet, as long as the bidet is fixed in place to the toilet. Here, the Bio Bidet is designed to fix to a standard toilet: it installs between the toilet bowl and the toilet seat and attaches directly to the toilet's water supply. The sprayer is not handheld, but instead projects directly from the toilet. While it does not include a toilet seat or a toilet, the subject merchandise still meets the dictionary definition of a bidet. It is a fully functioning bidet, not merely an attachment for a bidet.
CBP has classified other substantially similar products of plastics and metal materials in heading 3922, HTSUS. Both NY I80178, dated April 1, 2002, and NY N317581, dated February 23, 2021, classified hand-operated bidets, which consist of plastic and metal, and are designed to attach to any standard toilet, in subheading 3922.90, HTSUS, as bidets of plastics. Personal washers that meet the definition of a bidet are typically classified by its constituent material. See also NY N009882 (Apr. 19, 2007) (classifying bidets of vitreous china in subheading 6910.10, HTSUS, which specifically provides for bidets made of china). Therefore, pursuant to GRI 1 and the above analysis, the Bio Bidet is properly classified in heading 3922, HTSUS, as bidets of plastics.
In your Reconsideration Request, you allege that the Bio Bidet is prima facie classifiable in heading 8424, HTSUS, because the Bio Bidet is a hand-operated mechanical appliance that has the sole purpose of projecting, dispersing, and spraying water. Your request cites several prior CBP rulings in support of the classification in heading 8424, HTSUS. Further, were we to determine that the Bio Bidet is classifiable under two headings, you argue that heading 8424, HTSUS, is a more specific heading for the Bio Bidet than heading 3922, HTSUS, pursuant to GRI 3(a).
Heading 8424, HTSUS, includes mechanical appliances for projecting, dispersing or spraying liquids, including fire extinguishers, spray guns, steam or sand blasting machines, and agricultural or horticultural sprayers. EN 84.24 notes the heading "covers machines and appliances for projecting, dispersing or spraying steam, liquid or solid materials (e.g., sand, powders, granules, grit or metallic abrasives) in the form of a jet, a dispersion (whether or not in drips) or a spray." If your argument that the Bio Bidet is classified in heading 8424, HTSUS, is correct, then, hypothetically, many bidets would be classifiable in heading 8424, HTSUS, as they incorporate mechanisms that project or spray liquids. However, the presence of an eo nomine heading that specifically provides for bidets preempts classification within heading 8424, HTSUS.
In reviewing prior CBP rulings, the personal cleaning devices classified in heading 8424, HTSUS, include separate water reservoirs. For example, CBP has classified hand-held, battery-operated, personal cleaning devices with reservoirs in subheading 8424.89, HTSUS. See e.g., NY 859160 (Jan. 16, 1991) (classifying a portable, hand-held, battery-operated sanitary washer that holds approximately 110 cubic centimeters of water in subheading 8428.89, HTSUS); NY D83693 (Nov. 16, 1998) (classifying a hand-held, battery-operated, personal cleaning device that holds 200 milliliters of water in subheading 8428.89, HTSUS); NY N295685 (Apr. 25, 2018) (classifying a portable, hand-held personal washing device with a 180 milliliters refillable water tank in subheading 8428.89, HTSUS). The aforementioned rulings involved handheld units with their own water reservoir. Many other CBP rulings classifying personal cleaning devices in heading 8424, HTSUS, include goods with separate reservoirs. For example, pump dispensers with reservoirs were classified in heading 8424, HTSUS, while manually operated pumps imported without reservoirs were classified in heading 8413, HTSUS, which specifically provides for hand pumps. See HQ H305296 (Jan. 21, 2020); NY N322382 (Nov. 8, 2021). The Bio Bidet is not a handheld unit containing its own water reservoir, does not require batteries or electricity to operate, and is fixed to a water line.
A few items listed in heading 8424, HTSUS, plug directly into a water line, including pressure washers, irrigation systems, mechanical sprinklers, and other similar items. In your Reconsideration Request, you cite several rulings that classify merchandise such as sprinkler heads, machinery that implement sprayers, and irrigation drippers; all that are classified in heading 8424, HTSUS. See HQ 085842 (Mar. 13, 1990); HQ 953094 (Jan. 1, 1993); HQ H104896 (July 13, 2010); HQ H230156 (Oct. 10, 2014); NY N284425 (Apr. 17, 1991); NY C81571 (Nov. 25, 1997). However, these items that plug directly into a water line are all used outdoors or within heavy duty machinery, and they use a substantial amount of water over extended periods of time to operate. They are fundamentally different than the Bio Bidet, which is used inside of a dwelling and emits a small amount of water during its usage. Thus, the Bio Bidet is distinguished from pressure washers, irrigation systems, and mechanical sprinklers, which all fall within the purview of heading 8424, HTSUS.
Several other cases have looked at the language of heading 8424, HTSUS. In HQ H046780, dated March 10, 2009, CBP determined that shower heads and handheld shower parts are not classified in heading 8424, HTSUS, because they are merely akin to nozzles. The ruling further notes that "[b]athroom plumbing is not a mechanical appliance because it does not change one form of energy or motion to another," and because the shower heads are connected to pipes in the bathroom wall, which are controlled by valves. In HQ H307904, dated September 15, 2020, a cow cooling soaker was determined to not be classified in heading 8424, HTSUS, as it merely "controls the flow of water from the water line to the third party spray nozzle." Here, the Bio Bidet operates the same way a toilet does: it takes water from the water line, and by pressing a button or twisting a handle, distributes water into the toilet bowl. The bidet merely controls and allows the water to run in a different direction.
In sum, we conclude that the Bio Bidet is not prima facie classifiable in two headings; therefore, a GRI 3(a) analysis is not required. Nevertheless, we note that heading 3922, HTSUS, which explicitly provides for bidets, is the more specific provision than heading 8424, HTSUS, which generally provides for mechanical appliances for projecting, dispersing or spraying liquids. The ENs to GRI 3 support this conclusion, noting that a description "by name is more specific than a description by class." See Wagner Spray Tech Corp. v. United States, 31 CIT 676, 686 (2007).
For the aforementioned reasons, we hereby affirm NY N319093. Accordingly, by application of GRIs 1 and 6, the subject Bio Bidet is properly classified in heading 3922, HTSUS, as a "bidet," and is specifically classified in subheading 3922.90.00, HTSUS, which provides for "Baths, shower-baths, sinks, wash-basins, bidets, lavatory pans, seats and covers, flushing cisterns and similar sanitary ware, of plastics: Other."
Sincerely,
Yuliya A. Gulis, Director
Commercial and Trade Facilitation Division
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[1] Bidet, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bidet
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hHahHa hG>a5?hHahC!5? h'#5?hhZ[2] Bidet, Dictionary.com, https://www.dictionary.com/browse/bidet (last visited March 28, 2024)