CLA-2-60:OT:RR:NC:N3:352
Ms. Wendy George
Phoenix International Freight Services, Ltd.
257 Treeland Drive, Suite H
Ladson, SC 29456
RE: The tariff classification of a polyester stitch-bonded looped pile fabric from Thailand
Dear Ms. George:
In your letter dated February 22, 2011, on behalf of Tietex International, you requested a tariff classification ruling.
The submitted sample is identified as style T704. It is described as an LDPE (low density polyethylene) film weighing approximately 40 g/m2, stitched with 100% polyester yarn. You state that the fabric is manufactured in wide widths and then slit into vanes or rolls 155 mm (6 inches) in width prior to importation. The fabric is characterized by parallel rows of textile stitching along the length of the fabric, the stitches forming loops which project from the surface. Your correspondence indicates that this fabric will be used as part of an infant diaper fastening system.
Chapter 60, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States, (HTSUS), provides for knitted or crocheted fabrics. Note 3 to Chapter 60 states that:
Throughout the tariff schedule any reference to “knitted” goods includes a reference to stitch-bonded goods in which the chain stitches are formed of textile yarn.
In addition, General Note (A)(II)(1) to Chapter 60 of the Explanatory Notes (EN), which have been ruled to be the official interpretation of the Harmonized Code at the international level, states in part that Chapter 60 covers:
… textile fabrics which are manufactured, not like woven fabrics by interlacing warp and weft threads, but by the production of a series of interlinking loops. In general, these goods comprise:
(A) Knitted fabrics (weft knits and warp knits)…
The warp knits further include :
(1) Stitch bonded goods, provided they have chain stitches formed by textile yarn.
The stitch bonding process uses a machine similar to a warp knitting machine which operates with pointed, open hooked needles (sliding needles) and heald wire. These needles make it possible to form stitches with textile yarns which produce fabrics from a web of textile fibres or one or more layers of textile yarns, or from a ground of, for example, a woven fabric or a sheet of plastics. In some cases, the stitches may form or fix a pile (whether or not cut). Quilted products assembled by stitch bonding are excluded (heading 58.11).
In your letter you suggest that this stitch-bonded fabric should be classified under subheading 5603.12, HTSUS, as a nonwoven fabric, or alternatively, under 6001.99, HTSUS, as a pile fabric of other textile materials. However, classification in heading 5603 is precluded because the substrate in this material is a polyethylene film, which is considered to be a plastic sheet, and not a nonwoven fabric, which is defined by the Harmonized System Explanatory Notes to heading 56.03 as follows:
A nonwoven is a sheet or web of predominantly textile fibers oriented directionally or randomly and bonded. These fibres may be of natural or man-made origin. They may be staple fibres (natural or man-made) or man-made filaments or be formed in situ.
Also, Subheading Note 2(B)(b) to Section XI of the HTSUS states that in the case of textile products consisting of a ground fabric and a pile or looped surface no account shall be taken of the ground fabric. Since the looped surface of this fabric is formed by 100% polyester yarns, the fabric as a whole would be considered to be of man-made fibers for tariff purposes.
The applicable subheading for style T704 will be 6001.22.0000, HTSUS, which provides for pile fabrics, including “long pile” fabrics and terry fabrics, knitted or crocheted: looped pile fabrics: of man-made fibers. The rate of duty will be 17.2% 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/.
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 Maribeth Dunajski at (646) 733-3045.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division