CLA-2-44:OT:RR:NC:N1:130
Ms. Anastasiia Stulikova
Canusa Wood
500-1281 West Georgia Street
Vancouver, V6E 3J7
Canada
RE: The tariff classification of multilayer wood panels from China
Dear Ms. Stulikova:
In your letter, dated November 30, 2022, you requested a binding classification ruling. The ruling was requested on multilayer wood panels. Product information and a sample were submitted for our review.
Item number PL08 is a plywood panel that has been overlaid on its face and back with medium density fiberboard (MDF) and surfaced with a white melamine sheet. It is constructed of nine wood layers or plies, none of which exceeds 6 mm in thickness. The core consists of 7 plies of poplar (Populus spp., a nonconiferous wood) wood. The face and back plies consist of Radiata pine (Pinus radiata, a coniferous wood) wood measuring 1.8 mm in thickness. The grain of each layer runs at a 90-degree angle to the successive layers. The 9-layer panel is then overlaid on its face and back with a 2.6 mm-thick layer of MDF. Finally, the panel face and back are overlaid with a thin melamine sheet. The MDF and melamine sheet obscure the grain of the outer plies.
The term “plywood” is defined in the Explanatory Notes to the Harmonized System (ENs) for heading 4412, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), as a panel “consisting of three or more sheets of wood glued and pressed one on the other and generally disposed so that the grains of successive layers are at an angle.” This definition describes the instant panels. Plywood is specifically provided for in heading 4412 of the HTSUS, and the panels are classified in that heading in accordance with General Rule of Interpretation 1.
The MDF and melamine sheet constitute “surface coverings”, as defined in Additional US Note 1(c) to Chapter 44, HTSUS:
The term "surface covered," as applied to the articles of headings 4411 and 4412, means that one or more exterior surfaces of a product have been treated with creosote or other wood preservatives, or with fillers, sealers, waxes, oils, stains, varnishes, paints or enamels, or have been overlaid with paper, fabric, plastics, base metal, or other material.
The melamine overlay is covered by the term “plastics” above, and MDF is included within the term “other material”. The MDF and melamine are not veneers and they are incorporated for purposes of enhancing the plywood. As such, plywood overlaid with melamine sheet, or plywood with MDF laminated onto its face and back surfaces and overlaid with melamine sheet, meets the term “surface covered”. Because the MDF and melamine obscure the grain of the wood beneath, the panels will be classified as plywood that has been surface covered with a material that obscures the grain.
The applicable subheading for the surface covered multilayered wood panel, will be 4412.39.5050, HTSUS, which provides for Plywood, veneered panels and similar laminated wood: Other plywood consisting solely of sheets of wood (other than bamboo), each ply not exceeding 6 mm in thickness: Other, with both outer plies of coniferous wood: Other: Other. The rate of duty will be 5.1 percent ad valorem.
Pursuant to U.S. Note 20 to Subchapter III, Chapter 99, HTSUS, products of China classified under subheading 4412.39.5050, 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 4412.39.5050, 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, including information on exclusions and their effective dates, 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.
The merchandise in question may be subject to antidumping duties and countervailing duties (AD/CVD) for hardwood plywood from China (A570-051, C570-052). 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 Department of Commerce ITA website at https://www.trade.gov/data-visualization/adcvd-proceedings, and you can search AD/CVD deposit and liquidation messages using CBP’s AD/CVD Search tool at https://aceservices.cbp.dhs.gov/adcvdweb.
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 Laurel Duvall at [email protected]. Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division