CLA-2-59:RR:NC:TA:350 D82906
Mr. Dave Flather
Green Earth Enterprises
345 West 26th Street, North Vancouver
British Columbia, Canada V7N 2G7
RE: The tariff classification of a "Computer Dust Filters" kit
of woven Swiss textile fabric, produced in Canada..
Dear Mr. Flather:
In your letter dated September 17, 1998, you requested a
tariff classification ruling.
You submitted a kit containing a clear poly bag, inside of
which was a length of fabric and a small roll of double sided
pressure sensitive tape. The tape is clear and measures 1/2 inch
wide. The cardboard header indicates that the item is intended
for use as a dust filter for a computer. Directions are included
on how to cut and attach the filter material over the fan port of
the computer.
The material, itself, consists of a very fine plain woven
mesh fabric produced in Switzerland. The textile is of
monofilaments, but the man-made fiber type is not identified.
You write that a firm Tetko Inc.(based in New York) cuts the
material to a size and ships it to your plant in Canada. No
further details were furnished. We assume the material is of the
size, 17 inches by 4 inches, enclosed in the sample kit furnished
with your letter.
You write that the sticky tape is made in the USA, and re-rolled in Canada, but give no further details. You print the
header in BC and put the filter mesh and tape in plastic bags,
which is then ready to ship.
Although the self-adhesive tape is classifiable under
3919.10.2030, the main component of the kit is the filter
material.
Classification of goods under the HTSUSA, is governed by the
General Rules of Interpretation (GRI), taken in order. GRI 3(b)
provides for goods put up in sets for retail sale. The
Explanatory Notes to GRI 3(b) state that goods put up in sets for
retail sale means goods that consist of at least two different
articles which are, prima facie, classifiable in different
headings, that consist of products or articles put up together to
meet a particular need or carry out a specific activity, and are
put up in a manner suitable for sale directly to users without
repacking. Classification of goods that meet the definition of a
set is determined by the component that imparts the essential
character of the merchandise. The kit does fit the definition
of a set put up for retail sale; and, therefore, the item that
imparts the essential character is the woven mesh fabric.
Although the tape may qualify as American goods returned
under HTS 9801.00.10, resulting in a reduction in the amount of
duty, insufficient details were furnished as to all the steps
involved in the production of the tape in the US and subsequent
operations performed in Canada. You may wish to address these
operations in a subsequent letter.
The applicable subheading for the filter material kit,
therefore, will be 5911.40.0000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of
the United States (HTS), which provides for straining cloth of a
kind used in oil presses or the like. The rate of duty will be
11 percent ad valorem of the full value of the kit.
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 George
Barth at 212-466-5884.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director,
National Commodity
Specialist Division