Perma-Strip C.1.S. Coated Paper; Reconsideration of New York Letter 829530

HQ 083782 January 8, 1990 CLA-2 CO:R:C:G 083782 JLJ 832782 CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 4811.40.0000 Mr. W. T. Corcoran F. W. Myers & Co., Inc. P.O. Box 188 Champlain, New York 12919 RE: Perma-Strip C.1.S. Coated Paper; Reconsideration of New York Letter 829530 Dear Mr. Corcoran: You requested a reconsideration of New York letter 829530 of May 31, 1989, which classified Perma-Strip C.1.S. paper imported from Canada under the provision for paper and paperboard, coated, impregnated or covered with wax, paraffin, stearin, oil or glycerol, in subheading 4811.40.0000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA). FACTS: The paper at issue, Perma-Strip C.1.S. (formerly Mark IV), is used as a base for dry strippable wall paper. It is imported in rolls of 30 inches in diameter with a width of approximately 21-3/8 inches or a multiple thereof, depending upon customer requirements. Laboratory analysis of the sample indicates that the merchandise is white paper in sheets with a thickness of 0.127 millimeters and a basis weight of 124.68 grams per square meter. It consists of 100 percent chemical pulp fibers. It is coated on one side with a mixture of titanimum dioxide, calcium and aluminum salts and some clay (23 percent ash) with a latex binder (styrene acrylic). This side is also covered with a stearate and with wax. -2- Your client, J. Ford & Co. Limited, submitted a breakdown of components by weight and value. The percentage of wax in the saturant and coating is 2.4 percent of the total solids, while the percentage of calcium stearate is 0.68 percent. Your client states that both of these products are used as lubricants which help the calendering and as release agents for dry strippability. He feels that the paper is not coated or impregnated with wax or stearate because they are minor components of both the saturant and coating. ISSUE: Is a paper coated with a minor amount of wax classified as a paper coated with wax in subheading 4811.40.0000, HTSUSA? LAW AND ANALYSIS: There are two basic HTSUSA headings for coated paper imported in rolls or sheets. Heading 4810, HTSUSA, covers "Paper and paperboard, coated on one or both sides with kaolin (China clay) or other inorganic substances, with or without a binder, and with no other coating...." [Emphasis added.] Wax is an organic substance. Inasmuch as Heading 4810 specifies that the paper must be coated only with inorganic substances, Perma-Strip C.1.S. cannot be classified in Heading 4810, HTSUSA. Heading 4811, HTSUSA, covers "Paper, paperboard, ...coated, impregnated, covered, surface-colored, surface- decorated or printed...." The Explanatory Note for Heading 4811 states that it includes "Paper, paperboard,...to which superficial coatings of materials other than kaolin or other inorganic substances have been applied over the whole or part of one or both surfaces." Although the wax is only 2.4 percent of the solids on the coating, the wax does constitute part of the coating. Inasmuch as wax is an organic substance, Heading 4811 is the correct heading for the Perma-Strip C.1.S. -3- HOLDINGS: The Perma-Strip C.1.S. is coated with wax. It is classified under the provision for paper, paperboard, coated, impregnated, covered, surface-colored, surface-decorated or printed, in rolls or sheets...: paper and paperboard, coated, impregnated or covered with wax, paraffin, stearin, oil or glycerol, in subheading 4811.40.0000, HTSUSA, dutiable at the rate of 3.4 percent ad valorem. Merchandise originating in Canada and classified in this subheading is eligible for a 2.7 percent duty rate under the United State-Canada Free Trade Agreement if all applicable regulations are met. New York letter 829530 is affirmed. Sincerely, John Durant, Director Commercial Rulings Division 6cc: Area Dir., N.Y. Seaport (NIS-234 1 cc: Port Dir., Champlain, N.Y. T. Jones library/peh 083782JLJ