Classification of women's woven blouses, your case number HK 150/88

HQ 083889 June 16, 1989 CLA-2 CO:R:C:G 083889 CMR CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 384.2745 Ms. Doreen Wai Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office British Embassy 1233 20th Street, N.W. Suite 504 Washington, D.C. 20036 RE: Classification of women's woven blouses, your case number HK 150/88 Dear Ms. Wai: This ruling is in response to your letter of March 3, 1989, requesting classification of women's woven blouses. FACTS: The garments at issue, women's woven blouses, were shipped to J.F.K. Airport for G. R. Fashion Group in the Fall of 1988. Since the garments were entered in 1988, the classification is based on the Tariff Schedules of the United States Annotated (TSUSA). The garments are claimed to be 61 percent silk, 36 percent cotton, and 3 percent nylon. A sample blouse was tested by the Customs laboratory. The blouse was style #M926R. It was found to be composed, in its entirety, of 48.4 percent silk, 47.7 percent cotton, and 3.9 percent man-made fiber. The shell alone was determined to be 81.7 percent silk and 18.3 percent cotton. The results of a test by CMA Testing and Certification Laboratories were submitted. They identified the garment tested as "one (1) piece of woven wear in green colour with embroidery on it said to be Ladies' Woven Blouse 61% Silk 36% Cotton 3% Nylon with Article No. 1/89 and Style No. M926R." Their test results showed the overall composition of the garment, excluding buttons, to be 59.2 percent silk, 31.4 percent cotton, 3.7 percent acetate, 3.5 percent P.U., 1.1 percent nylon, and 1.1 percent rayon. -2- ISSUE: Is the sample blouse, style #M926R, classifiable as a silk blouse or as a silk blouse subject to cotton restraints? LAW AND ANALYSIS: Schedule 3, Statistical Note 3(a)(ii), TSUSA, provides: (a) The term "Subject to cotton restraints" refers to-- (ii) articles in which the cotton with wool and/or man-made fibers in the aggregate equal or exceed 50 percent by weight of the component fibers thereof and the cotton component equals or exceeds the weight of each of the total wool and/or total man-made fiber components (bold added). According to the Customs laboratory report, the garment is 47.7 percent cotton and 3.9 percent man-made fibers. Added together, the cotton and man-made fibers equal 51.6 percent of the garment. This exceeds the silk component by 3.2 percent. The garment is therefore subject to cotton restraints as defined in the Statistical Note 3(a)(ii) quoted above. HOLDING: The garment is classified as a women's ornamented woven blouse subject to cotton restraints in item 384.2745, textile category 341, dutiable at 8 percent ad valorem. The Import Specialist at J.F.K. Airport acted properly by requiring a visa for category 341. Sincerely, John Durant, Director Commercial Rulings Division 6cc: Area Director, New York Seaport 1cc: CITA 1cc: Legal Reference Section 1cc: Phil Robins