CLA-2-76:OT:RR:NC:N1:116
Mr. Juan C. Moreno
Zisser Customs Law Group, PC
9355 Airway Road, Suite 1
San Diego, CA 92154
RE: The tariff classification of aluminum top rails, bottom rails and balusters, top rails and bottom rails from China
Dear Mr. Moreno:
In your letter dated September 9, 2019, you requested a tariff classification ruling on behalf of your client, Digger Specialties, Inc.
The products to be imported are aluminum top rails, bottom rails and baluster tubes (balusters) for use in a fence guard railing system. These rails and seamless tubes are made from series 6063 T6 and 6005 T5 aluminum alloy and have been extruded. As imported, the top and bottom rails may or may not contain holes for the insertion of the balusters. You indicate that the top and bottom rails and balusters will be imported separately. After importation, the rails and balusters are powder coated and are put into stock. Once a customer places an order, the balusters, rails and other parts are pulled from stock and made into a complete fence guard railing system kit.
The applicable subheading for the baluster tubes will be 7608.20.0030, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for aluminum tubes and pipes: of aluminum alloys: seamless. The rate of duty will be 5.7 percent ad valorem.
The applicable subheading for the top and bottom rails without holes will be 7604.21.0000, HTSUS, which provides for aluminum bars, rods and profiles: of aluminum alloys: hollow profiles. The rate of duty will be 1.5 percent ad valorem.
The applicable subheading for the top and bottom rails with holes will be 7610.90.0080, HTSUS, which provides for aluminum structures (excluding prefabricated buildings of heading 9406) and parts of structures (for example, bridges and bridge-sections, towers, lattice masts, roofs, roofing frameworks, doors and windows and their frames and thresholds for doors, balustrades, pillars and columns); aluminum plates, rods, profiles, tubes and the like, prepared for use in structures: other: other: other. The rate of duty will be 5.7 percent 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 at https://hts.usitc.gov/current.
The merchandise in question may be subject to antidumping duties and countervailing duties (AD/CVD). Written decisions regarding the scope of AD/CVD orders are issued by the Enforcement and Compliance office in the International Trade Administration of the Department of Commerce and are separate from tariff classification and origin rulings issued by Customs and Border Protection (CBP). You can contact them at https://trade.gov/enforcement/ (click on “Contact Us”). For your information, you can view a list of current AD/CVD cases at the United States International Trade Commission website at https://www.usitc.gov (click on “Antidumping and Countervailing Duty” under “Popular Topics” at the top of the screen), and you can search AD/CVD deposit and liquidation messages using CBP’s AD/CVD Search tool at https://aceservices.cbp.dhs.gov/adcvdweb.
On March 8, 2018, Presidential proclamations 9704 and 9705 imposed additional tariffs and quotas on a number of steel and aluminum mill products. Exemptions have been made on a temporary basis for some countries. Quantitative limitations or quotas may apply for certain exempted countries and can also be found in Chapter 99. Additional duties for steel of 25 percent and for aluminum of 10 percent are reflected in Chapter 99, subheading 9903.80.01 for steel and subheading 9903.85.01 for aluminum. Products classified under subheadings 7604.21.0000 and 7608.20.0030, HTSUS, may be subject to additional duties or quota. At the time of importation, you must report the Chapter 99 subheading applicable to your product classification in addition to the Chapter 72, 73 or 76 subheading listed above. The Proclamations are subject to periodic amendment of the exclusions, so you should exercise reasonable care in monitoring the status of goods covered by the Proclamations and the applicable Chapter 99 subheadings.
Pursuant to U.S. Note 20 to Subchapter III, Chapter 99, HTSUS, products of China classified under subheadings 7604.21.0000 and 7608.20.0030, HTSUS, unless specifically excluded, are also subject to an additional 15 percent ad valorem rate of duty. At the time of importation, you must report the Chapter 99 subheading, i.e., 9903.88.15, in addition to subheadings 7604.21.0000 and 7608.20.0030, HTSUS, listed above.
Pursuant to U.S. Note 20 to Subchapter III, Chapter 99, HTSUS, products of China classified under subheading 7610.90.0080, HTSUS, unless specifically excluded, are subject to an additional 25 percent ad valorem rate of duty. At the time of importation, you must report the Chapter 99 subheading, i.e., 9903.88.03, in addition to subheading 7610.90.0080, HTSUS, listed above.
The HTSUS is subject to periodic amendment so you should exercise reasonable care in monitoring the status of goods covered by the Note cited above and the applicable Chapter 99 subheading. For background information regarding the trade remedy initiated pursuant to Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, you may refer to the relevant parts of the USTR and CBP websites, which are available at https://ustr.gov/issue-areas/enforcement/section-301-investigations/tariff-actions and https://www.cbp.gov/trade/remedies/301-certain-products-china, respectively.
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 Angelia Amerson at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division