CLA-2-98:OT:RR:NC:N4:433
Jeremy Bloch
Dell Will Customs Brokers
26480 Northline Commerce Drive
Taylor, MI 48180
RE: The tariff classification of equipment and goods related to the Formula 1 Race to be held at the Circuit of Americas in Del Valle, Texas.
Dear Mr. Bloch:
In your letter dated September 28, 2012, on behalf of Circuit of the Americas LLC, you requested a tariff classification ruling.
Your request for a ruling pertains to the equipment and goods necessary for the operation and competition of the Formula 1 Race to be held at the Circuit of the Americas in Del Valle, Texas, upcoming November 16th-18th, 2012. It is your belief that the appropriate classification for all associated equipment and goods is subheading 9817.60.0000 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which allows in part, for the duty free importation of articles not intended for sale or distribution to the public, but belonging to participants, officials, accredited members, teams and delegations of an international athletic event held in the United States.
All of the goods in question will be imported and re-exported via Air Charter and Ocean Container. They will include all the necessary equipment for participation in the race, such as driver gear, race cars and engines, tools for vehicles, wheels and tires, etc. Additionally included will be support equipment, such as television broadcasting equipment, team tents, comforts, etc.
Formula 1 or F1 are referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, and is the highest class of single-seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The “formula” designated in the name, refers to a set of rules with which all participants’ cars must comply. The F1 season consists of a series of races, known as Grand Prix, held on purpose-built circuits and public roads. The results of each race are combined with a points system to determine two annual World Championships, one for the drivers and one for the constructors. The racing drivers, constructor teams, track officials, organizers, and circuits are required to be holders of valid Super Licenses, the highest class of racing license issued by the FIA.
Subheading 9817.60.0000, HTSUS, provides for: Any of the following articles not intended for sale or distribution to the public: personal effects of aliens who are participants in, officials of, or accredited members of delegations to, an international athletic event held in the United States, such as the Olympics and Paralympics, the Goodwill Games, the Special Olympics World Games, the World Cup Soccer Games, or any similar international athletic event as the Secretary of the Treasury may determine, and of persons who are immediate family members of or servants to any of the foregoing persons; equipment and materials imported in connection with any such foregoing event by or on behalf of the foregoing persons or the organizing committee of such an event, articles to be used in exhibitions depicting the culture of a country participating in such an event; and, if consistent with the foregoing, such other articles as the Secretary of the Treasury may allow.
With regard to your request that CBP rule that the Formula 1 Race held in America and in 19 different countries is an international athletic event, on May 14, 2002, notice was published in the Federal Register designating the Volvo Ocean Race, a round-the-world international sailing competition, as a qualifying international athletic event under subheading 9817.60.0000, HTSUS. As the Formula 1 Race, although on land rather than on water, is another type of international racing competition, it too qualifies as an international athletic event under subheading 9817.60.0000, HTSUS.
Based on the information you provided, the direct equipment and goods necessary for the participation in the race, such as driver gear, race cars and engines, tools for vehicles, wheels and tires, as well as the support equipment, such as television broadcasting equipment, team tents and comforts, fall within the purview of subheading 9817.60.0000, HTSUS. This is subject to none of the items being offered for sale or distribution to the public, and provided said items are imported by, or on behalf, of eligible individuals or entities.
U.S. Note 8, Subchapter XVII, Chapter 98, provides: Any article exempt from duty under heading 9817.60.00 shall be free of taxes and fees that may otherwise be applicable, but shall not be free or otherwise exempt or excluded from routine or other inspections as may be required by the Customs Service. [Emphasis added.]
With regard to items that you have not specifically identified, it is within the discretion of the Port of Entry to determine whether the items meet the conditions and requirements of subheading 9817.60.0000, HTSUS. We recommend that you work with the port of entry with regard to any merchandise not identified herein and any other issues you may have, such as the correct marking of the merchandise, prior to importation.
The applicable subheading for the identified equipment and goods above, as well as identified support equipment above, in regard to the Formula 1 Race, will be 9817.60.0000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for “Any of the following articles not intended for sale or distribution to the public: personal effects of aliens who are participants in, officials of, or accredited members of delegations to, an international athletic event held in the United States, such as the Olympics and Paralympics, the Goodwill Games, the Special Olympics World Games, the World Cup Soccer Games, or any similar international athletic event as the Secretary of the Treasury may determine, and of persons who are immediate family members of or servants to any of the foregoing persons; equipment and materials imported in connection with any such foregoing event by or on behalf of the foregoing persons or the organizing committee of such an event, articles to be used in exhibitions depicting the culture of a country participating in such an event; and, if consistent with the foregoing, such other articles as the Secretary of the Treasury may allow.” 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/.
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 Neil H. Levy at (646) 733-3036.
Sincerely,
Thomas J. Russo
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division