HQ 085001: Tariff classification of down comforters and comforter covers

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 085001

                                November 15, 1989


      CLA-2 CO:R:C:G  085001  CMR

      CATEGORY: Classification

      TARIFF NO.: 9404.90.8000, 6302.31.1060

      James A. Geraghty, Esq.
      Donohue & Donohue
      Suite 111
      26 Broadway
      New York, New York  10004

      RE: Tariff classification of down comforters and comforter covers

      Dear Mr. Geraghty:

           This ruling is in response to your letters of June 29, 1989, and
      September 6, 1989.  We regret that you did not receive a copy of HRL
      083990 of June 13, 1989, which should have accompanied HRL 084136,
      issued to you on June 19, 1989.  We have enclosed a copy of HRL
      083990.

           In your letters, you requested clarification of the classi-
      fication of the comforters and comforter covers if imported together.
      In your initial letter of March 13, 1989, you expressed the opinion
      that the comforter covers should be classified under heading
      9404.90.80, HTSUSA, whether imported with the comforters or imported
      separately.  HRL 084136 adequately explains why this is not the case.

           If the comforters and comforter covers are imported separately,
      they are separately classified as indicated in HRL 084136.  The
      comforter covers are classified in subheading 6302.31.1060, HTSUSA,
      textile category 362, dutiable at 23.8 percent ad valorem.  The
      comforters are classified in subheading 9404.90.8000, HTSUSA, textile
      category 362, dutiable at 5 percent ad valorem.



















                                       -2-


           If the comforters and comforter covers are imported together, we
      must decide whether they meet the requirements for consideration as
      composite goods or goods put up in sets for retail sale.  The Explan-
      atory Notes, which are the official interpretation of the HTSUS at
      the international level, provide:

           For purposes of this Rule [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.

      The comforters and comforter covers clearly do not fall within the
      definition of composite goods given in the Explanatory Notes because
      they are normally offered for sale in separate parts.

           In order to be classified as sets, the comforters and comforter
      covers must be classifiable in different headings (which they are);
      be put together to meet a particular need or carry out a specific
      activity (which they do -- bedding); and be put up in a manner
      suitable for sale directly to users without repacking.

           Provided the comforters and comforter covers meet the last
      requirement listed above, they would be classifiable as sets.  As
      sets, classification is based on the component in the set which
      imparts the essential character.  In these sets, the role of the
      comforter in relation to the use of the goods is the more significant
      of the two components.  Accordingly, it is the comforter which gives
      the set its essential character.

           Therefore, comforters and comforter covers imported as sets are
      classified in subheading 9404.90.8000, HTSUSA, textile category 362,
      dutiable at 5 percent ad valorem.

           All applicable visa and quota requirements apply for textile
      articles which are classified as parts of a set.  Therefore,
      classification of the comforters and comforter covers as a set, when
      imported as such, does not effect the visa and quota requirements
      applicable to each separately.



















                                       -3-


           The designated textile and apparel category may be subdivided
      into parts.  If so, the visa and quota requirements applicable to the
      subject merchandise may be affected.  Since part categories are the
      result of international bilateral agreements which are subject to
      frequent renegotiations and changes, to obtain the most current
      information available, we suggest you check, close to the time of
      shipment, the Status Report On Current Import Quotas (Restraint
      Levels), an internal issuance of the U.S. Customs Service, which is
      updated weekly and is available for inspection at your local Customs
      office.

           Due to the changeable nature of the statistical annotation (the
      ninth and tenth digits of the classification) and the restraint
      (quota/visa) categories, you should contact your local Customs office
      prior to importation of this merchandise to determine the current
      status of any import restraints or requirements.


                                      Sincerely,



                                      John Durant, Director
                                      Commercial Rulings Division





































      6cc: Area Director, New York Seaport
      1cc: CITA
      1cc: Legal Reference Section
      1cc: Phil Robins