CLA-2-64:OT:RR:NC:N4:447
Mr. William B. Whitson
Panalpina, Inc. 2846 Wall Triana Highway
Huntsville, AL 35749
RE: Request for information regarding footwear imported together with drawstring shoe bag/pouch from Italy.
Dear Mr. Whitson: In your electronic ruling request submitted February 26, 2010 on behalf of your client Mephisto, Inc., you request information concerning the tariff treatment of shoe bags when imported together with two pair of men’s welt shoes. Your request concerns only the treatment of these shoe bags when imported together with the two pair of shoes. You identify the shoes as Styles “Daldar” and “Marlon” which have outer soles composed of rubber/plastics and uppers of leather. They are made in France and imported under subheading 6403.99.4055, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). You identify the shoe bags as being manufactured in Italy of 100% polypropylene and classified separately under subheading 4202.92.3031 (HTSUS). Included in each shoe box is the shoe bag which bears a Mephisto logo and the word Mephisto imprinted below it. You question whether the bags and shoes can be considered composite goods, classifiable together under the applicable subheading of the shoes. You state that the bags measure 11.5 x 16 inches with a drawstring closure at the top and are intended to be used to protect/transport the shoes. You provide a picture of how the shoes and bags are packed for importation. Although you do not state this in your letter, we will presume that the shoe bags are never individually sold at retail, but only accompany the shoes at the time of retail sale and are only meant to protect/transport the shoes when they are not in use.
GRI 3(b) provides for composite goods made up of different components. Explanatory Note IX to GRI 3(b) provides that composite goods can consist of separable components, provided these components are adapted to one another and are mutually complementary and that together they form a whole, which would not normally be offered for sale separately. The shoes and bags are a composite good as that term is defined and applied in the HTSUS. In this case, the components are separable and adapted to be used together. These simple bags, we presume, are slightly larger than the pair of shoes they are imported with and would not easily accommodate additional items, with room enough at the top to close the drawstring. The “Mephisto Footwear” logo, featured on the bags is another indication of the bags’ primary purpose. These bags would not likely be sold as an independent product for carrying various other personal effects (as would a back pack, fanny bag or shoulder bag). Although shoes are not always sold with drawstring bags, placement of the shoes in these bags during travel will keep the pair together and protect other personal effects from dirt that the shoes pick up. In this regard, the shoes and bags together form a composite article classified according to GRI 3(b). Composite goods are classified according to the component which gives them their essential character. Therefore, a pair of shoes accompanied by the type of simple drawstring bags as the ones you have submitted will constitute a composite article classifiable with the rate applicable to the classification of the shoes.
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 Stacey Kalkines at 646-733-3042.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division