OT:RR:NC:N2:209
Xiang Xu
AGT Customshouse Brokers
1352 Calle Rosamaria San Dimas, CA 91773
RE: The country of origin of Integrated Circuits
Dear Mr. Xu:
In your letter dated July 11, 2023, you requested a country of origin ruling on integrated circuits, on behalf of your client Superacme Inc.
The items concerned are 3 similar models of integrated circuits (IC), model numbers: KF1978E, KF1980E and KF1988E. The production of each IC begins with the manufacture of a semi-conductor wafer. The ICs undergo manufacturing steps in 2 different countries, South Korea and China.
The production process that occurs in South Korea is as follows:
Monocrystalline silicon wafer production
Epitaxial deposition
Thin-Film deposition
Photolithography
Etching
Ion implantation
Each 12-inch wafer produced in South Korea contains 4,761 die/chips. Each chip has the completed integrated circuit functionality. The wafers are then shipped to China for additional manufacturing processes.
The production process that occurs in China is as follows:
Bumping - growing a layer of copper pillars on the front side of the wafer.
Back grinding to thin the wafer.
Cutting the wafer into an individual die.
Flip-chip the bump to the substrate – connecting the internal circuit to the external pins
Packing
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).
Based upon the facts presented, it is the opinion of this office that wafers (which contain the completed integrated circuits) manufactured within South Korea do not undergo a substantial transformation as a result of the manufacturing process that takes place in China. They retain their identity as integrated circuits with a predetermined end use. Therefore, since a substantial transformation does not occur as a result of the Chinese manufacturing/assembly process, the country of origin of the finished integrated circuits will be South Korea for origin and marking purposes at time of importation into the United States.
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 Steven Pollichino at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Steven A. Mack
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division