COUNTRY OF ORIGIN MARKING OF IMPORTED CASTERS

NY M85516 August 25, 2006 MAR-2 RR:NC:N2:221 M85516 CATEGORY: MARKING Ms. Courtney Cabin Phoenix International Freight Services, Ltd. 855 IL Route 83 Bensenville, IL 60106-1219 RE: COUNTRY OF ORIGIN MARKING OF IMPORTED CASTERS Dear Ms. Cabin: This is in response to your letter dated July 27, 2006, on behalf of Haydock Caster Company, requesting a ruling on whether imported casters and/or their packing cartons are required to be marked with the country of origin if the casters are later to be processed in the U.S. by a U.S. manufacturer. A marked sample was not submitted with your letter for review. The casters will be sold to original equipment manufacturers of appliances and furniture. Some of the casters are made of plastics, while others are made of metal. They will be used as component parts of appliances and furniture and will not be sold directly to retailers. Haydock Caster Company is requesting exemption from country of origin marking for both the product and the outer cartons for imports for their customer EZ Way Corporation. The casters will be manufactured in either Taiwan or China. The marking statute, section 304, Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), provides that, unless excepted, every article of foreign origin (or its container) imported into the U.S. shall be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly and permanently as the nature of the article (or its container) will permit, in such a manner as to indicate to the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. the English name of the country of origin of the article. Part 134, Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 134), implements the country of origin marking requirements and exceptions of 19 U.S.C. 1304. Section 134.41(b), Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.41(b)), mandates that the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. must be able to find the marking easily and read it without strain. Section 134.1(d) defines the ultimate purchaser as generally the last person in the U.S. who will receive the article in the form in which it was imported. 19 CFR 134.1(d)(1) states that if an imported article will be used in manufacture, the manufacturer may be the ultimate purchaser if he subjects the imported article to a process which results in a substantial transformation of the article. The case of U.S. v. Gibson-Thomsen Co., Inc., 27 C.C.P.A. 267 (C.A.D. 98) (1940), provides that an article used in manufacture which results in an article having a name, character or use differing from that of the constituent article will be considered substantially transformed and that the manufacturer or processor will be considered the ultimate purchaser of the constituent materials. In such circumstances, the imported article is excepted from marking and only the outermost container is required to be marked. See 19 CFR 134.35. In this case, the imported casters are substantially transformed as a result of the U.S. processing, and therefore the U.S. manufacturer is the ultimate purchaser of the imported casters and under 19 CFR 134.35 only the containers which reach the ultimate purchaser are required to be marked with the country of origin. There is no exemption for country of origin marking on the cartons. Accordingly, the imported casters are excepted from individual country of origin marking provided the district director at the port of entry is satisfied that the casters will only be used in the manner described above and not otherwise sold, the outermost cartons in which the casters are imported are marked with the country of origin, and the ultimate purchaser will receive the casters in the marked cartons. This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 CFR 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 646-733-3023. Sincerely, Robert B. Swierupski Director, National Commodity Specialist Division