Animal Head Shoe Tie-ons and Zipper Pulls

HQ 083538 February 12, 1990 CLA-2 CO:R:C:G 083538 JBW 834718 CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 6307.90.9050 Ms. Laura Fumagalli Import/Export Manager Dakin Inc. Post Office Box 7745 San Francisco, California 94120 RE: Animal Head Shoe Tie-ons and Zipper Pulls Dear Ms. Fumagalli: Your letter of December 5, 1988, on behalf of Dakin, Inc., addressed to our New York office, has been referred to this office for a binding ruling on the classification of animal head "shoe tie-ons" and "zipper pulls" under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA). FACTS: You requested classification of two items referred to as a "shoe tie-on," number 15-9760, and a "zipper pull," number 15-9820. The shoe tie-on is described as an animal head of man- made fibers with two small loops on the back. These loops enable the animal head to serve as a shoe decoration by running the shoe laces through the loops. The zipper pull is also described as an animal head of man-made textile fibers. The zipper pull has a plastic hook to enable the animal head to be attached to a zipper. The zipper pull serves both as decoration and as a mechanism to facilitate a child's use of the zipper. ISSUE: What is the classification under the HTSUSA for textile animal heads designed for use as shoe or zipper ornaments? LAW AND ANALYSIS: The General Rules of Interpretation (GRI's) set forth the legal framework in which merchandise is to be classified under the HTSUSA. GRI 1 requires that classification be determined first according to the terms of the headings of the tariff and any relative section or chapter notes and, unless otherwise required, according to the remaining GRI's. Heading 9503, HTSUSA, provides for toys. A toy is an object designed for the amusement of a child or an adult. The items under consideration are designed primarily for ornamentation or adornment, and the amusement value appears secondary. The items are consequently not considered toys under the HTSUSA. Other provisions are equally inapplicable. Note 3 to Chapter 64 of the HTSUSA excludes ornaments from classification as "parts of footwear" under Heading 6404, HTSUSA. The Explanatory Notes, which provide the official interpretation of the HTSUSA at the international level, include as parts of zippers (slide fasteners), such items as "chain scoops, sliders or runners, end pieces, and narrow strips of any length mounted with chain scoops." Again, because ornamentation is the principal use of the animal heads, classification under this provision is inappropriate. Heading 6307, HTSUSA, provides for other made up articles of textile materials. The Explanatory Notes for this heading state that the heading covers made up articles of any textile material that are not included more specifically in other headings of Section XI or elsewhere in the Nomenclature. From the discussion in the preceding paragraphs, the items under consideration are not more specifically provided for in other headings and, therefore, are classified under this heading. HOLDING: The animal head shoe tie-ons and zipper pulls are classified under subheading 6307.90.9050, as other made up articles, other, with a duty of 7 percent ad valorem. Sincerely, John Durant, Director Commercial Rulings Division