Vinyl Coated Textile Fabrics (Tarpaulin Materials), from Korea

HQ 955343 October 12, 1994 CLA-2 CO:R:C:F 955343 ALS CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 3921.90.1950 Mr. Phil Busch President Value Vinyls 645 St. Charles Court Arlington, TX 76013 RE: Vinyl Coated Textile Fabrics (Tarpaulin Materials), from Korea Dear Mr. Busch: This is in reference to your letter of November 4, 1993, the exchange of correspondence and telephonic discussions between you, this Office and the Customs New York Seaport Area Office. FACTS: The products in question are a woven textile fabric, of a single polyester man-made fiber, that have been completely encased or covered on both sides with compact polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic. The two styles under consideration vary only slightly in their respective fabric's construction and their overall weight, 18 ounces and 22 ounces per square yard, respectively. These materials, subsequent to importation, are made up into tarpaulins for truck covers and the like. ISSUE: What is the classification of the subject materials? - 2 - LAW AND ANALYSIS: Classification of merchandise under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA) is governed by the General Rules of Interpretation (GRI's) taken in order. GRI 1 provides that the classification is determined first in accordance with the terms of the headings and any relative section and chapter notes. If GRI 1 fails to classify the goods and if the heading and legal notes do not otherwise require, the remaining GRI's are applied, taken in order. Classification of these types of products has historically been dependent on the percentage of the total weight of the combined polyvinyl chloride coated (PVC) plastic man-made material that is plastics. Subheading 3921.90.1100, HTSUSA, provides for plastics combined with man-made textile fibers where the plastics form over 70 percent of the total weight of the product. Subheading 3921.90.1500, HTSUSA, provides for plastic combined with man-made textile fibers where the plastics form 70 percent or less of the total weight of the product. Thus the question to be resolved in each instance was whether or not the product was composed of over 70 per cent by weight of plastics. Information and documents submitted during the consideration of this matter by our New York Seaport Area Office as well as laboratory analyses during such consideration failed to confirm that the plastic component exceeded 70 percent of the total weight of the product. Thus New York Ruling Letter (NYRL) 889588, dated September 16, 1993, held that the subject merchandise was classifiable in subheading 3921.90.1500, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA). Further information and documents submitted to this Office subsequent thereto in connection with the importer's request for reconsideration of NYRL 889588 as well as further laboratory analyses confirmed that such decision was correct. However, the Court of International Trade, in Semperit Industrial Products, Inc. v. United States, Slip Op. 94-100 (Order June 14, 1994, amended order June 30, 1994), considered the language of subheading 4010.19.15, HTSUSA, which reads: "With textile components in which man-made fibers predominate by weight over any other single textile fiber...." The Court concluded that a product must contain more than one textile fiber and that man- made fibers must be superior in weight for a product to be - 3 - classifiable under such provision. Thus, the interpretation of the aforementioned subheading and other subheadings containing the same language, including subheading 3921.90, HTSUSA, is, by operation of law, changed. In light of such change, we have considered your request as a new request for a binding ruling. In our consideration we noted that the subject products you import are composed of a woven textile fabric, of a single polyester man-made fiber, that has been completely encased or covered on both sides with compact polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic. We have concluded that the above court case is applicable to the subject products. Accordingly, we have also concluded that neither subheading 3921.90.11, HTSUSA, which you claimed to be the proper classification for your products, nor subheading 3921.90.15, HTSUSA, under which your products were previously classified, is, by operation of law, applicable thereto. HOLDING: Woven textile fabric composed of a single polyester man-made fiber encased or covered on both sides with compact PVC plastic is classifiable in subheading 3921.90.1950, HTSUSA, and is subject to a general rate of duty of 5.3 percent ad valorem. Sincerely, John Durant, Director Commercial Rulings Division