us-cbp-cross-rulings-hq-082369•HQ 082369: Country of origin of certain sweaters
HQ 082369: Country of origin of certain sweaters
us-cbp-cross-rulings-hq-082369HQ 082369: Country of origin of certain sweatersGuidance
Native CBP ruling rendition. Applicability is fact-specific; modification/revocation relationships and original publisher date are retained. Publisher sentinel year0001 means unknown date, not a historical legal adoption.
HQ 082369
January 24, 1989
CLA-2 CO:R:C:G 082369 SM 076187
CATEGORY: Classification
TARIFF NO: (no tariff number used)
Francis W. Foote, Esq.
Siegel, Mandell & Davidson, P.C.
Suite 300
665 Fifteenth Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20005
RE: Country of origin of certain sweaters
Dear Mr. Foote:
Your letter of May 25, 1988, on behalf of XXXXXXXXXXXXX,
requests a binding country of origin ruling for certain
sweaters. You previously requested a ruling for an identical
transaction that was considered under file 076187. However,
you withdrew the request before a ruling was issued, and that
file was closed.
Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. {
552 (1982), and 19 C.F.R. { 177.2(b)(7) (1988), you request
that your client's name and address as well as the name of the
second country or territory involved in the prospective trans-
action, XXXXXXXXXXXXX be treated as privileged or confidential
information, the disclosure of which would tend to cause com-
petitive harm to your client. We agree to preserve the confi-
dentiality of these two pieces of information by deleting them
from either your letter of August 12, 1988, or from this re-
sponse before either is released to the public.
FACTS:
You state that the sweaters, sleeved and sleeveless,
will be produced through operations carried out in two dif-
ferent foreign countries or territories, and you ask us to
determine which of the two will be considered the country of
origin in accordance with the textile country of origin
regulations, 19 C.F.R. { 12.130. The operations you describe
may be summarized as follows. In South Korea, Taiwan, or
China yarn will be knit on flat or circular knitting machines
into continuous lengths of piece goods of four different
specifications. The piece goods are so made that the pulling
of threads will result in their separating into distinct
-2-
panels that will be used to make sweater fronts or backs,
sleeves, neck ribbing, or armhole ribbing, respectively,
depending on the specifications. In the second country
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX the piece goods will be separated into
panels. Shoulder, neckline, armhole, and sleeve cap edges
will be shaped by cutting. Seams will be joined, and the
finished sweaters will be inspected, pressed, and boxed.
You have submitted samples of the piece goods, cut
parts, and finished sweaters.
Your position is that application of the textile country
of origin regulations to the proposed transaction results in
the conclusion XXXXXXXXX will be the country of origin of the
sweaters. You argue, specifically, that application of 19
C.F.R. { 12.130(e)(1)(iv), providing that the country where
fabric is cut into parts and the parts assembled into a
completed article is generally considered the country of
origin of the article, requires the conclusion XXXXXXXXX is
the country of origin of the sweaters. You also believe that
the operations to be performed XXXXXXX are more substantial
than the joining of knit-to-shape parts which is specified in
19 C.F.R. {12.130(e)(2)(iii) not to result in a change in
country of origin.
ISSUE:
Do the operations performed XXXXXXX result in a change
in country of origin of South Korean, Taiwanese, or Chinese
piece goods so XXXXXXXXX is the country of origin of the
finished sweaters within the meaning of 19 C.F.R. { 12.130?
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
The textile country of origin regulations provide, at 19
C.F.R. { 12.130(b), that textile products processed in more
than one foreign country or territory shall be products of
that country where they last underwent a substantial transfor-
mation. Section 12.130(e)(1)(iv) provides that an article
will usually be a product of the country where it has under-
gone, prior to importation, cutting of fabric into parts and
the assembly of those parts into the completed article.
This subsection thus requires that what is cut into
parts and assembled be fabric. We do not consider the sub-
mitted samples referred to as piece goods to be fabric within
the meaning of this subsection. Rather, they consist of a
series of panels with rib-knit bands at the lower edges,
-3-
separated by lines of stitching that will easily unravel when
pulled. Although you emphasize that until further cutting the
use of the panels as either sweater fronts or sweater backs is
not determined, it is obvious that the panels can reasonably
be used only as the front or back panels of sweaters. Realis-
tically, the merchandise, as imported XXXXXXXXX, is commer-
cially dedicated for use in the manufacture of sweaters. We
have ruled previously that the type of "piece goods" in ques-
tion here is classifiable as parts of sweaters if imported in
that condition. IA 7/87, file 079657 of April 5, 1987;
affirmed, file 080469 of December 21, 1987.
We have also ruled previously that the type of operation
to be performed in the second country XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX, does
not constitute a substantial transformation within the meaning
of 19 C.F.R. { 12..130(e)(1)(iv). Rather, subsection 12.130
(e)(2)(iii) is controlling here. This section provides that
textile articles will usually not be products of a country or
territory where they have undergone trimming and/or joining
together by sewing or other means of attaching otherwise com-
pleted knit-to-shape component parts produced in a single
country, even when accompanied by other processes. Although
some cutting of the knitted pieces is done--in order to shape
the neckline, for example--to further shape the panels before
final assembly of the sweaters, the rib-knit-bordered deline-
ated panels are sufficiently identifiable as parts of sweat-
ers and are in fact dedicated to that use at the time of their
importation XXXXXXXXX. File 082161 of June 22, 1988.
HOLDING:
The sweaters will be products of South Korea, Taiwan, or
China, wherever the panels are knit.
You state that you wish to schedule a conference if
Customs does not agree with your position in this matter.
Since we have previously ruled several times on virtually
identical transactions, and since you had at least two meet-
ings on your submission of a request for a ruling on the
identical transaction, file 076187, no further conferences
would be helpful.
Sincerely,
John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division
6cc: Area Director of Customs
New York Seaport Area
cc: Legal Reference Section
cc: CITA
cc: Phil Robins
cc: NIS Mike Crowley
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