The country of origin of an automotive infotainment assembly

N328152 October 4, 2022 CLA-2-85:OT:RR:NC:N2:212 CATEGORY: Country of Origin H. Michael Leightman Ernst & Young LLP 1401 McKinney Street Houston, TX 77010 RE: The country of origin of an automotive infotainment assembly Dear Mr. Leightman: In your letter dated September 14, 2022, you requested a country of origin ruling on behalf of your client, AUO Corporation. The merchandise under consideration is identified as the C304 Automotive Infotainment Assembly, which you state is used within a vehicle for display and control purposes. The subject device consists of a liquid crystal display (LCD) with incorporated touchscreen technology and backlight. The device further incorporates printed circuit board assemblies (PCBAs), which are described as the system board, power boards, and T-CON board. The system board, per the provided information, interprets the user’s input and sends this information to the vehicle’s Electronic Control Unit (ECU). The power boards supply left and right power to the backlight and the T-CON board sends signals to the LCD allowing for images to be displayed. In your request, you state that the manufacturing process begins in Taiwan with the creation of the four PCBAs through surface mount technology (SMT). The boards are then packaged and sent to China. In China, the glass LCD panel is created by combining a Thin Film Technology (TFT) substrate with a color filter and injecting liquid crystals between the two. This LCD panel is combined with the PCBAs as well as the backlight and touchscreen. The final assembly is then tested for functionality and packaged for shipment to the U.S. The “country of origin” is defined in 19 CFR 134.1(b), in pertinent part, as “the country of manufacture, production, or growth of any article of foreign origin entering the United States. Further work or material added to an article in another country must effect a substantial transformation in order to render such other country the 'country of origin' within the meaning of this part.” For tariff purposes, the courts have held that a substantial transformation occurs when an article emerges from a process with a new name, character or use different from that possessed by the article prior to processing. United States v. Gibson-Thomsen Co., Inc., 27 CCPA 267, C.A.D. 98 (1940); National Hand Tool Corp. v. United States, 16 CIT 308 (1992), aff’d, 989 F. 2d 1201 (Fed. Cir. 1993); Anheuser Busch Brewing Association v. The United States, 207 U.S. 556 (1908) and Uniroyal Inc. v. United States, 542 F. Supp. 1026 (1982). Regarding the origin of the subject assemblies, it is the opinion of this office that the multiple PCBA components manufactured in Taiwan are the critical components of the finished article. Further, though the manufacturing and assembly process performed in China, including the manufacture of the LCD screen, adds significant functionality we find that the PCBAs are not substantially transformed by the process. As such, based upon the fact presented, the country of origin of the C304 Automotive Infotainment Assembly will be Taiwan. 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 Luke LePage at [email protected]. Sincerely, Steven A. Mack Director National Commodity Specialist Division