OT:RR:NC:N1:121
HwaJeong Song
Global Concepts Korea, Inc.
68 Mayu-ro, Siheung, Siheung 15111 Korea, South
RE: The country of origin of an an aluminum monitor mount
Dear Ms. Song:
In your letter dated December 13, 2022, you requested a country of origin ruling on an aluminum monitor mount.
The article under consideration is identified as the Sapper XYZ Arm Assy, Part Number 5AD0600. It is a monitor mount designed to hold one flat screen monitor with a weight up to 20 pounds. The arm is fully adjustable and includes a clamp designed to mount onto a desk or tabletop. The monitor mount is made of diecast aluminum and contains a gas spring that allows for vertical and horizontal adjustments. The aluminum base and elbow joint allow for 360 degrees of pivot. The subject arm assembly is designed to support and hang a vertical load by projecting from a flat surface and providing a mount that allows the monitor to sit vertically.
The applicable subheading for the Sapper XYZ Arm Assy, Part Number 5AD0600 will be 8302.50.0000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for Base metal mountings, fittings and similar articles suitable for furniture, doors, staircases, windows, blinds, coachwork, saddlery, trunks, chests, caskets or the like; base metal hat racks, hat-pegs, brackets and similar fixtures; …: Hat-racks, hat pegs, brackets and similar fixtures, and parts thereof. The rate of duty will be free.
You suggested classification for the computer monitor arm under 7616.99, HTSUS, which provides for other articles aluminum: other: other. We disagree. Heading 7616 covers a wide range of aluminum articles that are not more specifically provided for elsewhere in the tariff. Noting that the computer monitor arm under consideration is more specifically provided for in heading 8302, HTSUS, the monitor arm would not be classifiable under heading 7616, HTSUS, as an other article of aluminum.
In your ruling request you state that you purchase 8 diecast aluminum alloy parts from China and import those to Korea classified under 9403.99.9000 as furniture parts. Your documentation indicates that the Chinese goods make up approximately 65% of the weight, 29% of the value, and 65% of the labor hours of the completed article. You state the rest of the raw materials are purchased and processed in South Korea. Processing of those additional materials includes plastic injection, pressing, and assembly. The diecast components from China are then assembled with the parts from Korea in a process that takes 8 minutes. The completed monitor arm then undergoes visual inspection, operation testing, and packing in Korea and is then exported from South Korea to the U.S. as a monitor arm.
The marking statute, section 304, Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), provides that, unless excepted, every article of foreign origin (or its container) imported into the U.S. shall be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly and permanently as the nature of the article (or its container) will permit, in such a manner as to indicate to the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. the English name of the country of origin of the article.
The "country of origin" is defined in 19 CFR 134.1(b) as "the country of manufacture, production, or growth of any article of foreign origin entering the United States. Further work or material added to an article in another country must effect a substantial transformation in order to render such other country the 'country of origin' within the meaning of this part."
The test for determining whether a substantial transformation will occur is whether an article emerges from a process with a new name, character or use, different from that possessed by the article prior to processing. See Texas Instruments Inc. v. United States, 69 C.C.P.A. 151 (1982).
This determination is based on the totality of the evidence. See National Hand Tool Corp. v. United States, 16 C.I.T. 308 (1992), aff'd, 989 F.2d 1201 (Fed. Cir. 1993).
Section 134.1(b), Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. § 134.1(b)), defines "country of origin" as the country of manufacture, production, or growth of any article of foreign origin entering the United States. Further work or material added to an article in another country must effect a substantial transformation in order to render such other country the “country of origin”. Based on the information submitted, this office is of the opinion that in this instance the assembly operation performed in South Korea does not substantially transform the diecast parts of Chinese origin into a Korean product. The 8 diecast parts from China make up the structure of the monitor arms and are more appropriately classified under 8302.50.0000, which provides for Hat-racks, hat pegs, brackets and similar fixtures, and parts thereof. The additional individual components that are purchased or produced in Korea and then assembled with the 8 diecast parts from China to complete the Sapper XYZ Arm Assy do not create a new and different article of commerce with a distinct character and use that is not inherent in the 8 diecast parts from China. Therefore, the country of origin for the Sapper XYZ Arm Assy, Part Number 5AD0600 will be the country of origin of the 8 diecast parts, which is China.
Pursuant to U.S. Note 20 to Subchapter III, Chapter 99, HTSUS, products of China classified under subheading 8302.50.0000, 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 8302.50.0000, 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.
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs and Border Protection 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, please contact National Import Specialist Jennifer Jameson at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division