Modification of New York Ruling Letter (NYRL 844853) Regarding the Classification of Egg Wrappers

HQ 085591 January 5, 1990 CLA-2 CO:R:C:G 085591 JBW 844853 CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 4911.91.4040 Mr. John Moriarty Import Manager 9971 Valley View Road Minneapolis, MN 56344 RE: Modification of New York Ruling Letter (NYRL 844853) Regarding the Classification of Egg Wrappers Dear Mr. Moriarty: On September 11, 1989, our New York office issued a ruling, NYRL 844853, that classified your product "Dudley's Egg Dazzlers," item #10750, under subheading 3924.90.5000 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA), which provides for other household articles of plastic: other. In a letter dated September 6, 1989, you inadvertently included in a second letter to New York a request for classification of this product along with other products. Ordinarily, the Customs Service will not entertain requests for classification of articles that are already pending. 19 C.F.R. 177.1(a) (1989). However, after review of NYRL 844853, our New York office has requested that we reconsider their initial classification. FACTS: "Dudley's Egg Dazzlers" is a retail package of twelve plastic printed wrappers that are used to decorate eggs. The plastic wrappers have printed flowers, animals, baskets, or designs. A wrapper is placed around an egg, which is in turn immersed in boiling water. The wrapper shrinks to fit smoothly around the egg. Included in the retail package are cardboard stands used for drying the eggs. ISSUE: What is the classification of printed egg wrappers under the HTSUSA? 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. Where goods are classifiable under two or more headings, GRI 3 governs. The Explanatory Notes, which represent the official interpretation of the tariff at the international level, for GRI 3(b) define goods put up in sets for retail sale. Such goods: (a) consist of at least two different articles that are classifiable in different headings, (b) consist of products put up together 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 repackaging. GRI 3(b) requires classification of goods put up in sets as if they consisted of the component that gives them their essential character. The article under consideration is a set. It consists of two components, the plastic wrappers and the cardboard stands, that are classifiable under different headings and packaged in a retail package for direct sale to consumers. The activity carried out by the wrappers is egg decoration. The wrappers play the principal role in the use of the set and therefore impart the essential character to the set. Chapter 49, HTSUSA, provides for printed matter. The Explanatory Notes include within this chapter "all printed matter of which the essential nature and use is determined by the fact of its being printed with motifs, characters or pictorial representations." Moreover, although most products classified under this chapter are printed on paper, the Explanatory Notes includes goods of other materials. The article under consideration meets the description of printed matter and is therefore classified under Chapter 49. More specifically, the article is classified under subheading 4911.91.4040, HTSUSA, as other printed matter: other: pictures, designs, and photographs: printed not over 20 years at the time of importation: other: other. HOLDING: The "Dudley's Egg Dazzlers," item #10750, is classified under subheading 4911.91.4040, HTSUSA. The duty is 3.1 percent ad valorem. NYRL 844853 is hereby modified pursuant to 19 C.F.R. 177.9(d) (1989). Sincerely, John Durant, Director Commercial Rulings Division