The country of origin of constant velocity axles

N361463May 26, 2026OT:RR:NC:N:2:206
CATEGORY: OriginChaorui WangDTL Law Office Company Limited34th Floor, Tower A, The Ninth Tower, 33/4 Rama 9 Road, Huaykwang Sub-district, Huaykwang District Bangkok 10310ThailandRE: The country of origin of constant velocity axlesDear Mr. Wang:In your letter dated
April 12, 2026
, you requested a country of origin ruling on constant velocity axle, filedson behalf of Zhenke Auto Parts (Thailand) Co., Ltd., for marking purposes and for purposes of applying traderemedies under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended, from China.The article under consideration a Constant Velocity (CV) axle, sresProduct Models HO-8-8638, KD-8-8543,which BM-8-8001, FD-8-8678, and GC-8-8676, are designed to be used in passenger vehicles. Each CV axlea core component of the automotive transmission system t is used the engine and wheels whileis ;ito connect,enabling the constant velocity transmission of power. It also adapts to the vehicle's steering requirements,ensuring stable forward movement and flexible steering of the vehicle.E CV axle includes three core components: an outer CV joint (also known as an outer CV joint unit orachOCVJ for short), an inner CV joint (also known as an inner CV joint unit or ICVJ for short), and anintermediate shaft. The OCVJ connects to the wheel hub and the intermediate shaft, and its function is totransmit the power input through the intermediate shaft to the wheel hub, thereby driving the vehicle forwardand enabling steering. The ICVJ connects to the differential and the intermediate shaft, transmits the poweroutput by the engine to the intermediate shaft through this component, and functions to transmit torque andcompensate for length. The intermediate shaft is used to connect the OCVJ and the ICVJ, and transmitpower. The auxiliary parts include a boot, dust covers, clamps, nuts, circlips, grease, etc.The processing of the three core components and key sub-components that constitute them, as well as thefinal assembly of the CV axle, are all completed in Thailand. The OCVJ mainly consists of an outer race andinner race. The outer race is manufactured in Thailand from round steel through 12 processes includingheating, forging, turning, and milling. The inner race uses forgings imported from China and is processedinto shape in Thailand through heat treatment, hard turning, and hard milling processes. The inner race isthen installed into the Thai cage and inside the outer race. Then, steel balls from China are inserted tocomplete the assembly.
The ICVJ mainly consists an outer race and a tripod. The outer race is manufactured in Thailand fromof round steel through 11 processes. Tripod is manufactured in Thailand from discrete parts such as shaft hubsand needle rollers. Afterwards, the outer race is further assembled with the tripod to form the ICVJ.The intermediate shaft is produced in Thailand using round steel as raw material throug 9 processes thehincluding rough and finish turning, thread rolling, heat treatment, and precision machining. Finally, the threecore components, the OCVJ, ICVJ, and intermediate shaft undergo final assembly in Thailand to formfinished CV axle product.When determining the country of origin for purposes of applying current trade remedies under Section 301and additional duties, the substantial transformation analysis is applicable. See, e.g., Headquarters RulingLetter H301619, dated November 6, 2018. The test for determining whether a substantial transformation willoccur is whether an article emerges from a process with a new name, character, or use different from thatpossessed by the article prior to processing. See , 681 F.2d 778Texas Instruments Inc. v. United States(C.C.P.A. 1982). This determination is based on the totality of the evidence. See National Hand Tool Corp. v., 16 C.I.T. 308 (1992), aff’d, 989 F.2d 1201 (Fed. Cir. 1993).United StatesAdditionally, Section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), provides that unlessexcepted, every article of foreign origin imported into the United States shall be marked in a conspicuousplace as legibly, indelibly, and permanently as the nature of the article (or its container) will permit, in such amanner as to indicate to the ultimate purchaser in the United States, the English name of the country of originof the article. Congressional intent in enacting 19 U.S.C. 1304 was “that the ultimate purchaser should beable to know by an inspection of the marking on the imported goods the country of which the goods is theproduct. The evident purpose is to mark the goods so that at the time of purchase the ultimate purchaser may,by knowing where the goods were produced, be able to buy or refuse to buy them, if such marking shouldinfluence his will.” See , 27 C.C.P.A. 297, 302 (1940).United States v. Friedlaender & Co.Part 134 of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) Regulations (19 CFR 134) implements thecountry of origin marking requirements and exceptions of 19 U.S.C. 1304. Section 134.1(b), CBPRegulations (19 CFR 134.1(b)), defines “country of origin” as the country of manufacture, production, orgrowth of any article of foreign origin entering the United States. Further work or material added to an articlein another country must effect a substantial transformation in order to render such other country the “countryof origin” within the meaning of the marking laws and regulations.In New York (NY) ruling N336861, dated December 18, 2023, (see also N350623, dated July 22, 2025 andN354393, dated October 22, 2025) CBP stated that the character of a CV axle was the intermediate shaft andCV joints. In the present case, the CV joints are made in Thailand from Chinese and Thai components, whilethe intermediate shaft is produced in Thailand. Furthermore the final assembly of all components also occursin Thailand. As a result, it is the opinion of this office that the country of origin of the CV axles, Product will be Thailand for markingModels HO-8-8638, KD-8-8543, BM-8-8001, FD-8-8678, and GC-8-8676,purposes and additional duties under Section 301will not apply. The holding set forth above applies only to the specific factual situation and merchandise description asidentified 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 theinformation furnished in the ruling letter, whether directly, by reference, or by implication, is accurate andcomplete in every material respect. In the event that the facts are modified in any way, or if the goods do notconform to these facts at time of importation, you should bring this to the attention of U.S. Customs andBorder 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 periodicverification by CBP.
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs and Border ProtectionRegulations (19 C.F.R. 177).A copy of the ruling or the control number indicated above should be provided with the entry documentsfiled at the time this merchandise is imported. If you have any questions regarding the ruling, please contactNational Import Specialist Liana Alvarez at [email protected]
Sincerely,
(for)James P. ForkanDirectorNational Commodity Specialist Division