THE COUNTRY OF ORIGIN MARKING OF GIFT BAGS

NY E87322 October 1, 1999 MAR-2 RR:NC:SP:221 E87322 CATEGORY: MARKING Ms. Jane Montgomery PAK 2000, Inc. P.O. Box 438 Mirror Lake, NH 03853 RE: THE COUNTRY OF ORIGIN MARKING OF GIFT BAGS Dear Ms. Montgomery: This is in response to your letter dated September 8, 1999, requesting a ruling on whether the proposed marking "Made in U.S.A." is an acceptable country of origin marking for imported gift bags. A marked sample was submitted with your letter for review. The polyethylene gift bags are made in the United States. The bags are then shipped to Mexico, where they are folded and packaged in a poly bag which is then heat sealed. The country of origin of the bags remains the United States. The poly bag provided with the sample gift bag is marked “Made in U.S.A., Assembled in Mexico.” The gift bags are not assembled in Mexico; the gift bags are merely packaged in Mexico. The marking regulations refer to goods of “foreign origin.” Since the gift bags are of U.S. origin, it is not necessary to mark the bags with the country of origin. If you wish, you may mark the bags “Made in U.S.A.” This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. Part 177). A copy of the ruling or the control number indicated above should be provided with the entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is imported. If you have any questions regarding the ruling, contact National Import Specialist Joan Mazzola at 212-637-7034. Sincerely, Robert B. Swierupski Director, National Commodity Specialist Division