us-cbp-cross-rulings-hq-083852•HQ 083852: Tariff classification of pumpkin costume
HQ 083852: Tariff classification of pumpkin costume
us-cbp-cross-rulings-hq-083852HQ 083852: Tariff classification of pumpkin costumeGuidance
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 083852
May 22, 1989
CLA-2 CO:R:C:G 083852 SM
CATEGORY: Classification
TARIFF NO.: 6211.43.0090
Ms. Lorraine M. Dugan
Associated Merchandising Corporation
50 Terminal Road
Secaucus, NJ 07094
RE: Tariff classification of pumpkin costume
Dear Ms. Dugan:
Your letter of February 8, 1989, on behalf of Mervyns,
addressed to our New York office, requesting a tariff classi-
fication ruling for a felt pumpkin costume, has been referred
to this office for reply.
FACTS:
A sample of Style PU-2, to be imported from Taiwan, was
submitted. It consists of three pieces, of acrylic, all
packaged in a clear plastic hanging container with a sheet of
cardboard showing a photograph of a woman wearing the costume.
The largest piece of the costume is an orange sack, of sorts,
with openings for the wearer's head, arms, and legs. A
circular orange headpiece with a green "stem" attached to the
top and a black half mask are the other two pieces.
ISSUE:
How is the pumpkin costume classified?
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
Classification under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of
the United States Annotated (HTSUSA) is in accordance with the
General Rules of Interpretation (GRI's). GRI 1 provides that
classification is determined first in accordance with the
terms of the headings of the tariff and any relative section
and chapter notes and then, if nothing in the headings or
notes otherwise requires, in accordance with the remaining
GRI's.
Heading 9505, HTSUSA, provides for festive, carnival, or
other entertainment articles. The Explanatory Notes (EN), the
official interpretation of the HTSUSA at the international
-2-
level, indicate that this heading is intended to include
articles of fancy dress, such as masks, false ears and noses,
wigs, false beards, and moustaches. However, Legal Note 1(e)
of Chapter 95 excludes from the headings of that chapter arti-
cles of fancy dress of textiles of Chapters 61 or 62.
The tariff does not define fancy dress. The definition
of a classification term is a question of law. Converters
Div. of American Hospital Supply Corp. v. United States, 861
F.2d 710,712 (Fed. Cir. 1988). Tariff terms are construed
according to their common and commercial meanings which are
presumed to be the same. Nippon Kogaku (USA), Inc. v. United
States, 673 F.2d 380, 382 (CCPA 1982). Webster's Third New
International Dictionary, Unabridged, at 822 (1965) defines
fancy dress as:
a costume (as for a masquerade or party) depart-
ing from currently conventional style and usu.
representing a fictional or historical character,
an animal, the fancy of the wearer, or a par-
ticular occupation . . .
As a masquerade or party costume, Style PU-2 falls within this
definition of fancy dress. Since it is of textile, it is ex-
cluded from Chapter 95 if classifiable in Chapter 61 or 62.
Heading 6211, HTSUSA, providing for track suits, ski-
suits, swimwear, and other garments, would cover the main
portion of the pumpkin costume. Heading 6505, HTSUSA, includ-
ing headgear made up from textile fabric, would cover the
headwear portion of the costume. Heading 9505, HTSUSA, covers
the mask. Since no single heading provides for all three
articles, classification cannot be determined under GRI 1.
GRI 3 generally provides for the classification of goods
that appear classifiable under two or more headings. GRI
3(a), providing for classification under the heading that is
the most specific, does not apply when, as here, each heading
considered refers to part only of the goods.
GRI 3(b) provides that "[m]ixtures, composite goods
consisting of different materials or made up of different
components, and goods put up in sets for retail sale, which
cannot be classified by reference to 3(a), shall be classi-
fied as if they consisted of the material or component which
gives them their essential character . . . ."
The EN for GRI 3(b) provide interpretation of the terms
essential character, composite goods, and goods put up in sets
for retail sale. With regard to composite goods they state:
-3-
For the purposes of [GRI 3(b)], composite goods
made up of different components shall be taken
to mean not only those in which the components
are attached to each other to form a practically
inseparable whole but also those with separable
components, provided these components are adapted
one to the other and are mutually complementary
and that together they form a whole which would
not normally be offered for sale in separate parts
. . . . As a general rule, the components of these
composite goods are put up in a common packing.
The main portion of the pumpkin costume and the head covering
fall within this description. Separable components, they are
adapted to one another in that together they enable the wearer
to convey the image of the pumpkin or, more properly, the
jack-o'-lantern, since appliques on the front of the costume
portray the well-known facial features of that Halloween fix-
ture. The two pieces are packed together and would not
normally be offered for sale separately.
However, the mask cannot be described as forming com-
posite goods together with the "pumpkin" and its "lid." There
is no particular adaptation between the pumpkin parts and the
black mask for the wearer's eyes; the mask is of a common type
often sold separately. However, the mask can still be classi-
fied with the other two pieces of the whole falls within the
description of sets. The EN state that goods put up in sets
for retail sale are those which:
(a) consist of at least two different articles
which are, prima facie, classifiable in
different headings . . .;
(b) consist of products or articles put up to-
gether to meet a particular need or carry out
a specific activity; and
(c) are put up in a manner suitable for sale
directly to users without repacking . . . .
The pumpkin-mask combination consists of three articles prima
facie classifiable under different headings. They are put up
together to enable the wearer to participate in Halloween
activities, which normally involve costumes with masks. We
assume that they are imported packed for sale directly to
users without repacking. Thus, the pumpkin outfit and mask
meet the requirements for classification as a set.
-4-
The EN state further that the factor determining essen-
tial character will vary with different kinds of goods. It
may be "the nature of the material or component, its bulk,
quantity, weight or value, or . . . the role of a constituent
material in relation to the use of the goods." With regard to
Style PU-2, it is the pumpkin-lid composite that provides the
essential character. Although Halloween costumes generally
include masks, the mask of Style PU-2 has no particular con-
nection with dressing up as a pumpkin and would not be the
principal motivating factor in the purchase of the costume.
Style PU-2, a set consisting of a mask and a garment-
headwear composite, is classifiable as though consisting of
the composite. Since it will fall under heading 6211, HTSUSA,
it is excluded from Chapter 95 by Note 1(e) of that chapter.
Although the package shows a woman wearing the costume,
there does not seem to be anything about it to identify it as
either men's and boys' or women's and girls'. It is therefore
classified under the subheading for women's and girls' gar-
ments. Note 8, Chapter 62, HTSUSA.
HOLDING:
Style PU-2 is classified under subheading 6211.43.0090,
HTSUSA, textile category 659, a provision for other women's
and girls' garments, of man-made fibers, not knitted or cro-
cheted.
Because of the changeable nature of the statistical
annotation, i.e., the ninth and tenth digits of the tariff
number, and of the textile restraint categories, you should
contact your local Customs office before importing this mer-
chandise to determine the current status of any import
restraints or requirements.
Sincerely,
John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division
6cc: Area Director of Customs
NY Seaport Area
cc: Legal Reference Section
cc: CITA
cc: NIS Alice Wong
cc: NIS Herb Persky
cc: Phil Robins
cc: Cynthia Reese
Continue your research in ChatGPT or Claude
Connect Omnilex to search the legal corpus from your AI assistant.