The country of origin of oral care swabs from Vietnam.

N349793
June 30, 2025
OT:RR:NC:N4:415
CATEGORY: Origin Hao Shi Jiangsu Jianyu Health Medical Co., Ltd. 88 Longxi Avenue, Zhulin Town, Jintan District Changzhou, 213200 China RE: The country of origin of oral care swabs from Vietnam. Dear Mr. Shi: In your letter dated June 4, 2025, you requested a country of origin ruling on oral care swabs on behalf of your client, Medline Industries, LP. The products under consideration are described as DenTips. They are used similar to a toothbrush to provide oral care. There are two versions, one that is untreated and another that has dentifrice applied. The untreated version features a blue sponge and a polypropylene (“PP”) stick that are bonded together. The treated version consists of a green sponge, a PP stick bonded to the sponge, and a dentifrice printed onto the surface of the sponge. For the untreated version, the sponge is sourced from Vietnam and the PP stick is from Indonesia. In China, the sponge is glued onto the PP stick using hot melt adhesive. It will then be packaged for export to the United States. For the treated version, the sponge is sourced from Vietnam, the PP stick from Indonesia, and the dentifrice from the United States. In China, the sponge is glued onto the PP stick using hot melt adhesive and then the dentifrice is printed onto the surface of the sponge. It will then be packaged for export to the United States. When determining the country of origin, the substantial transformation analysis is applicable. See, e.g., Headquarters Ruling Letter (“HQ”) H301619, dated November 6, 2018. The test for determining whether a substantial transformation will occur is whether an article emerges from a process with a new name, character, or use different from that possessed by the article prior to processing. See Texas Instruments Inc. v. United States, 681 F.2d 778 (C.C.P.A. 1982). This determination is based on the totality of the evidence. See National Hand Tool Corp. v. United States, 16 C.I.T. 308 (1992), aff’d, 989 F.2d 1201 (Fed. Cir. 1993). In order to determine whether a substantial transformation occurs when components are assembled into completed products, all factors such as the components used to create the product and manufacturing

processes that these components undergo are considered in order to determine whether a product with a new name, character, and use has been produced. No one factor is decisive, and assembly/manufacturing operations that are minimal will generally not result in a substantial transformation. We find that the sponge head holds the basic nature of the finished swab and does not become a new article having a new name, character, or use after being attached to the handle in China. Therefore, the origin of the finished oral care swabs will remain the same as the origin of the sponge heads as they are not substantially transformed in China. Accordingly, the country of origin for the treated and untreated versions of the DenTips will be Vietnam. The holding set forth above applies only to the specific factual situation and merchandise description as identified in the ruling request. This position is clearly set forth in Title 19, Code of Federal Regulations (“CFR”), Section 177.9(b)(1). This section states that a ruling letter is issued on the assumption that all of the information furnished in the ruling letter, whether directly, by reference, or by implication, is accurate and complete in every material respect. In the event that the facts are modified in any way, or if the goods do not conform to these facts at time of importation, you should bring this to the attention of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) and submit a request for a new ruling in accordance with 19 CFR 177.2. Additionally, we note that the material facts described in the foregoing ruling may be subject to periodic verification by CBP. This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the CBP Regulations (19 CFR 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, please contact National Import Specialist Kristopher Burton at [email protected].
Sincerely,
(for) James Forkan Acting Director National Commodity Specialist Division