CLA-2-92:OT:RR:NC:N4:428
Mr. Moshé Meyer Ohayon
Amanacore LLC
Suite 15P
788 Columbus Avenue
New York, NY 10025
RE: The tariff classification and status under the United States-Morocco Free Trade Agreement (UMFTA), of kudu shofars from Morocco.
Dear Mr. Ohayon:
In your letter dated March 8, 2012, you requested a ruling on the status of kudu shofars from Morocco under the UMFTA.
The merchandise under consideration are kudu shofars, which are mouth-blown instruments made of kudu horns that are often used in religious ceremonies. From the information you provided, the kudu from which the horns are collected are bred, farmed, and harvested in Tanzania. The horns are then shipped to Morocco, where they undergo the processing steps required to transform the horns into shofars, including sorting, separating the horn from the bone, sterilization, straightening of the horn, preparation of the mouthpiece, and polishing. According to subsequent email correspondence dated March 8, 2012, and March 9, 2012, the sum of the value of the material produced in Morocco and the direct costs of processing operations performed in Morocco exceeds 35 percent of the appraised value of the shofar at the time it enters into the territory of the United States.
The applicable tariff provision for the kudu shofars will be 9208.90.0080, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for “Music boxes…whistles, call horns and other mouth-blown signaling instruments: Other: Other.” The general rate of duty will be 5.3 percent ad valorem.
General Note 27, HTSUS, sets forth the criteria for determining whether a good is originating under the UMFTA. General Note 27(b), HTSUS, (19 U.S.C. § 1202) states, in pertinent part, that
For the purposes of this note, subject to the provisions of subdivisions (c), (d), (e), (g) and (h) thereof, a good imported into the United States is eligible for treatment as an originating good of a UMFTA country under the terms of this note only if –
(i) the good is a good wholly the growth, product or manufacture of Morocco or of the United States, or both;
(ii) the good is a new or different article of commerce that has been grown, produced or manufactured in the territory of Morocco or of the United States, or both, and that falls in a heading or subheading of the tariff schedule that is not covered by the product-specific rules of subdivision (h) of this note; and the sum of--
(A) the value of each material produced in the territory of Morocco or of the United States, or both;
(B) the direct costs of processing operations performed in the territory of Morocco or the United Sates, or both,
is not less than 35 percent of the appraised value of the good at the time the good is entered into the territory of the United States; or
(iii) the good falls in a heading or subheading covered by a product-specific rule in subdivision (h) of this note and—
(A)(1)each of the nonoriginating materials used in the production of the good undergoes an applicable change in tariff classification specified in such subdivision (h); or
(2)the good otherwise satisfies the requirements specified in subdivision (h) of this note; and
(B) the good meets any other requirements specified in this note;
and is imported directly into the territory of the United States from the territory of Morocco and meets all other applicable requirements of this note. For purposes of this note, the term “good” means any merchandise, product, article or material.
Based on the facts provided, the goods described above qualify for UMFTA preferential treatment, because they will meet the requirements of HTSUS General Note 27 (b)(ii). The goods will therefore be entitled to a Free rate of duty under the UMFTA upon compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, and agreements.
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 Nicole Sullivan at (646) 733-3028.
Sincerely,
Thomas J. Russo
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division