CLA-2-84:OT:RR:NC:N1:105
Nicole Vallee
Customs Compliance Specialist
Costco Wholesale Corporation
13510 166th Avenue SE
Issaquah, WA 98059
RE: The tariff classification of a Misting Kit from China
Dear Ms. Vallee:
In your letter dated April 12, 2022, you requested a tariff classification ruling. A photo of the Misting Kit as well as a breakdown of the components was included with the ruling request.
The item under consideration is described as a DIY Misting Kit (Item # 1900660). The essential components are all put together in one retail box and includes a timer, 80 feet of polyethylene tubing, 27 brass misting nozzles, 54 cable clamps, 25 nozzle holders, and additional fittings and accessories (such as swivel nuts, a hose cutter, and screws). The product has a variety of home uses including watering plants and gardens, entertainment for children (such as being connected to a trampoline), cooling people and animals standing near the mist, as well as being a natural bug repellent as mosquitos do not like flying through the mist. The mister attaches to a standard outside hose bib but can also be attached to a separately purchased pump for additional spray power. Multiple kits can be purchased and installed together to create a longer mister.
In your letter, you suggest the appropriate classification for the DIY Misting Kit (Item # 1900660) to be subheading 8424.89.9000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for “Mechanical appliances (whether or not hand operated) for projecting, dispersing or spraying liquids or powders; fire extinguishers, whether or not charged; spray guns and similar appliances; steam or sand blasting machines and similar jet projecting machines; parts thereof: Other appliances: Other.” We agree. The general rate of duty will be 2.4% ad valorem.
Products of China classified under subheading 8424.89.9000, HTSUS, unless specifically excluded, are subject to the additional 25 percent ad valorem rate of duty. If the merchandise is from China, you must report the Chapter 99 subheading, i.e., 9903.88.02 in addition to the corresponding subheading 8424.89.9000, HTSUS, listed above at the time of importation.
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.
In your submission, you requested that the DIY Misting Kit be considered for duty-free treatment as agricultural or horticultural machinery under subheading 9817.00.50, HTSUS, which provides for Machinery, equipment and implements to be used for agricultural or horticultural purposes.
Subheading 9817.00.50, HTSUS, is an actual use provision. To fall within a special classification, a three-part test must be met. First, the subject merchandise must not be excluded from the heading under Section XXII, Chapter 98, Subchapter XVII, U.S. Note 2, HTSUS. Secondly, the terms of the headings must be met in accordance with GRI 1, which provides that classification is determined according to the terms of the headings and any relative section or chapter notes. Thirdly, the article must comply with the actual use regulations under Section 10.131 through 10.139, Customs Regulations (19 CFR 10.131 through 10.139).
In regard to subheading 9817.00.50, HTSUS, the subject merchandise is classifiable under the subheading 8424, HTSUS. This subheading is not excluded from classification in 9817 by operation of Section XXII, chapter 98, Subchapter XVII, U.S. Note 2, HTSUS.
The second part of the test calls for the unit to be included within the terms of the subheadings. Subheading 9817.00.50, HTSUS, as required by GRI 1, states the unit must be “machinery”, “equipment” or “implements” used for “agricultural or horticultural purposes”. Based on the information provided, it is this office’s opinion that the subject merchandise does not qualify for subheading 9817.00.50 since the item may not be used for agricultural or horticultural purposes. While one use for the Misting Kit can be to water a garden, the kit is also used to provide entertainment for children, cooling people and animals standing near the mist, being a natural bug repellent, as well as other non-horticultural uses. Therefore, the Misting Kit fails the second test and subheading 9817.00.50, HTSUS, is not applicable.
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 the World Wide Web at https://hts.usitc.gov/current.
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 Jason Christie at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division