CLA-2-48:RR:NC:SP:234 M83422
Ms. Lisa Westercamp
Portafolia
1948 Highway 1 North
Fairfield, IA 52556
RE: The tariff classification of a scrapbook (album) kit from China.
Dear Ms. Westercamp:
In your letter dated May 5, 2006, you requested a tariff classification ruling.
A sample identified as a “Scrapbooking Start Up Kit” (Item CSF134) was submitted for our examination. It consists of a miniature tote bag containing a small scrapbook shrink-wrapped together with various accessories intended to enable the user to customize and decorate the book. The bag, made of PVC plastic sheeting, measures approximately 3” x 5½” x 6”(H), not including its dual carrying handles, which arch an additional 5¾” above the top edge. The front and back panels of the bag are prominently printed with the word “Scrapfest!” accompanied by a design depicting girls engaged in scrapbooking activity. The bag is color-coordinated with its contents, and is appropriately sized to hold them without appreciable excess capacity. It appears to be specifically designed to serve both as the retail container of the kit and as a convenient repository in which all the items can be kept together by the user. The kit will be imported and sold as one item, as presented; individual components will not be sold separately.
The contents of the bag are as follows:
A 5” x 5” scrapbook album consisting of heavyweight paper pages staple-bound within a heavyweight paper cover. The album incorporates a ribbon closure.
4 jacquard woven polyester textile “labels,” which are small pieces of fabric, not printed, but bearing wording (“awesome,” “hottie,” etc.) formed by in-the-weave yarns of contrasting color. Three of these items are rectangular, while one is irregularly shaped.
A sheet of die-cut, pressure-sensitive stickers printed with alphabet letters.
6 sheets (5” x 5”) of decorative paper printed with repetitive designs.
3 woven polyester textile ribbons, each one foot in length by either 3/8” or 5/8” in width, bearing phrases and designs that appear to have been produced by a jacquard-type process.
3 “fuzzy fibers.” Two of these (red and purple) are one-foot lengths of nylon chenille yarn. The third one is a pink nylon braid, also one foot in length.
One pair of scissors having plastic handles and decorative-edge metal blades.
A packet of 12 plastic buttons.
For tariff classification purposes, the above-described merchandise will be regarded as “goods put up in sets for retail sale” whose essential character is imparted by the album, which is the focal point of the kit.
Accordingly, the applicable subheading for the complete # CSF134 “Scrapbooking Start Up Kit” will be 4820.50.0000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for albums for samples or for collections, of paper or paperboard. The rate of duty will be Free.
Duty rates are provided for your convenience and are subject to change. The text of the most recent HTSUS and the accompanying duty rates are provided on World Wide Web at http://www.usitc.gov/tata/hts/.
Even though the woven polyester ribbons, the pink nylon braid and the rectangular woven polyester “labels” are included as constituent parts of the set for classification purposes, they still fall within textile category 229 and may be subject to textile quota and visa requirements, which are the result of international agreements that are subject to frequent renegotiations and changes. To obtain the most current information as to whether quota and visa requirements apply to this merchandise, we suggest that you check, close to the time of shipment, the “Textile Status Report for Absolute Quotas” available at our web site at www.cbp.gov. In addition, you will find current information on textile import quotas, textile safeguard actions and related issues at the web site of the Office of Textiles and Apparel, at otexa.ita.doc.gov.
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. 177).
A copy of the ruling or the control number indicated above should be provided with the entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is imported. If you have any questions regarding the ruling, contact National Import Specialist Carl Abramowitz at 646-733-3037.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director,
National Commodity
Specialist Division