The tariff classification of a girl’s costume from China

N015157 August 9, 2007 CLA-2-62:RR:NC:3:353 CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 6206.40.3050, 6102.30.2020, 9505.90.6000 Pat Beals Teetot & Company, Inc. 207 W Crowther, Suite D Placentia, CA 92870 RE: The tariff classification of a girl’s costume from China Dear Ms. Beals: In your letter received in this office on August 2, 2007, you requested a classification ruling. A sample of the item has been previously examined by this office. Item # 62140 50’s Outfit Costume consists of a blouse, jacket, skirt and petticoat. The blouse is constructed of woven 65% polyester, 35% cotton fabric. The blouse features styling, lace-like edging on the collar and bodice, stitched-on beads. The blouse is considered well made. The jacket is constructed of knit polyester fleece fabric and features styling, rib knit neck and wrists, full front snap closure and finished hems. The jacket is considered well made. The skirt is constructed of polyester felt fabric, with loose overlock stitched seams and glued-on poodle appliqué. The skirt is considered flimsy. The petticoat is constructed of knit polyester fabric with a loose overlock stitched seam and waist of thin elastic sewn on with a loose single straight stitch. The petticoat is considered flimsy. The Item # 62140 50’s Outfit Costume consists of two or more garments. Note 14 of Section XI, of the HTSUS, requires that textile garments of different headings be separately classified, thus preventing classification of costumes consisting of two or more garments as sets. If a set cannot exist by application of Note 14, the articles that may be packaged with the garments must also be classified separately. You state that you believe the costume is properly classified under heading 9505 as a “festive article.” Costumes are considered “fancy dress.” The Court of Appeals ruled on the classification of costumes in its decision in Rubie’s Costume Co. v. United States, slip op 02-1373 (Fed. Cir. Aug. 1, 2003). The decision stated that all flimsy, non-durable textile costumes that are not ordinary articles of apparel are classified under 9505.90.6000 (flimsy); all textile costumes that do not meet flimsy, non-durable standards (well made), or are ordinary articles of apparel are classified in chapters 61 or 62. Your costume blouse and jacket are well made. The applicable subheading for the Item # 62140 50’s blouse will be 6206.40.3050, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for women’s and girls’ blouses, shirts and shirt-blouses: of man-made fibers: other: other, other: girls’: other. The duty rate will be 26.9% ad valorem. The textile category designation is 641. The applicable subheading for the Item # 62140 50’s jacket will be 6102.30.2020, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for women’s and girls’ overcoats, carcoats, capes, cloaks, anoraks…and similar articles, knitted or crocheted, other than those of heading 6104: of man-made fibers: other: other, girls’. The duty rate will be 28.2% ad valorem. The textile category designation is 635. The applicable subheading for the Item # 62140 50’s skirt and petticoat will be 9505.90.6000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for festive, carnival or other entertainment articles, including magic tricks and practical joke articles; parts and accessories thereof: other: other. The duty rate will be Free. Duty rates are provided for your convenience and are subject to change. The text of the most recent HTSUS and the accompanying duty rates are provided on World Wide Web at http://www.usitc.gov/tata/hts/. With the exception of certain products of China, quota/visa requirements are no longer applicable for merchandise which is the product of World Trade Organization (WTO) member countries. Quota and visa requirements are the result of international agreements that are subject to frequent renegotiations and changes. To obtain the most current information on quota and visa requirements applicable to this merchandise, we suggest you check, close to the time of shipment, the “Textile Status Report for Absolute Quotas” which is available on our web site at www.cbp.gov. For current information regarding possible textile safeguard actions on goods from China and related issues, we refer you to the web site of the Office of Textiles and Apparel of the Department of Commerce at otexa.ita.doc.gov. Please note that separate Federal Trade Commission marking requirements exist regarding country of origin, fiber content, and other information that must appear on many textile items. You should contact the Federal Trade Commission, Division of Enforcement, 6th and Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C., 20580, for information on the applicability of these requirements to this item. Information can also be found at the FTC website www.ftc.gov (click on "Consumer Protection,” “Business Information,” “Clothing & Textiles,” “Threading Your Way Through the Labeling Requirements”). This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. 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 Kenneth Reidlinger at 646-733-3053. Sincerely, Robert B. Swierupski Director, National Commodity Specialist Division