CLA-2-61:RR:NC:TA:359
Ms. Bernadette Purcell
QVC, Inc.
Studio Park
1200 Wilson Drive
West Chester, PA 19380-4262
RE: The tariff classification of a woman’s dress and a tote bag from China.
Dear Ms. Purcell:
In your letter dated February 16, 2007, you requested a classification ruling. The provided samples will be returned as per your request.
Your sample is a two piece item (Style A9977) consisting of a woman’s hooded dress and a corn husk tote bag.
The dress extends from the shoulders to just below the knee and will be constructed from 80% cotton and 20% polyester knit fabric. The garment features a hood with a drawstring, a V-neck opening at the neckline, a kangaroo pocket at the waist, short hemmed sleeves, an embroidered palm tree at the upper left side, and a hemmed bottom with side slits.
The bag is a double handled open tote with a textile lining measuring approximately 12 inches high by 18 inches wide by 5 inches deep, with a drawstring and tie closure. The bag has an undivided compartment with one wall pocket. The bag has a depiction of a palm tree on the front. The bag is made of woven strips of corn husk.
You have indicated that the dress and tote bag will be imported and sold as a unit. Since there is no one Harmonized Tariff number that would cover such a grouping, they must be considered under General Rules of Interpretation 3(b). Under that rule, items that are composite goods or sets may be classified under a single Harmonized Tariff number. The dress and tote bag are not considered a composite good because they are not adapted to one another, not mutually complementary, and do not form a whole that would normally be offered for sale in separate parts. The dress and tote bag are not considered a set because they are not put together to meet a particular need or carry out a specific activity. Therefore, the dress and tote bag are considered separate articles, and are classified separately.
The applicable subheading for the dress will be 6104.42.0010, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for women’s dresses, knitted: of cotton: women’s. The duty rate will be 11.5% ad valorem.
The applicable subheading for the tote bag will be 4602.19.2940, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for basketwork, wickerwork and other articles, made directly to shape from plaiting materials or made up from articles of heading 4601; articles of loofah: of vegetable materials: other: luggage, handbags and flatgoods, whether or not lined; other; other. The duty rate will be 5.3% ad valorem.
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/.
The dress falls within textile category 336. With the exception of certain products of China, quota/visa requirements are no longer applicable for merchandise which is the product of World Trade Organization (WTO) member countries. The textile category number above applies to merchandise produced in non-WTO member-countries. Quota and visa requirements are the result of international agreements that are subject to frequent renegotiations and changes. To obtain the most current information on quota and visa requirements applicable to this merchandise, we suggest you check, close to the time of shipment, the “Textile Status Report for Absolute Quotas” which is available on our web site at www.cbp.gov. For current information regarding possible textile safeguard actions on goods from China and related issues, we refer you to the web site of the Office of Textiles and Apparel of the Department of Commerce 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 Francine Vivona-Brock at 646-733-3049.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director,
National Commodity
Specialist Division