Tariff classification of wooden blinds from Thailand

NY 893564 January 13, 1994 CLA-2-44:S:N:N8:230 893564 CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 4421.90.4000 Mr. William J. Ramia, Jr. Alexander International Memphis International Airport P.O. Box 30209 Memphis, TN 38130 RE: Tariff classification of wooden blinds from Thailand Dear Mr. Ramia: In your letter dated December 17, 1993, on behalf of your client, Hunter Douglas, Inc. of Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, you requested a tariff classification ruling. The ruling was requested on wooden blinds to be imported in a variety of sizes. A representative sample was submitted which will be returned to you as you requested. The blind consists of one inch wide loose hanging wooden slats strung together with textile cords and attached to a metal headrail. The blind contains a mechanism which allows the slats to be raised and lowered and the angle of the opening between the slats to be adjusted. You state that these are "fixed" slats and you believe that they should be classified under subheading 4421.90.3000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA), which provides for wood blinds, shutters, screens and shades, all the foregoing with or without their hardware: Consisting of wooden frames in the center of which are fixed louver boards or slats, with or without their hardware. However, the wooden blinds being imported do not meet the above description. The slats are not in the center of a wooden frame and they are not fixed. Fixed is defined as "firmly in position, stationary, unmovable" (The American Heritage Dictionary.) The applicable subheading for the wooden blinds will be 4421.90.4000, HTSUSA, which provides for wood blinds, shutters, screens and shades, all the foregoing with or without their hardware: Other. The rate of duty will be 8 percent ad valorem. Section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), requires that, unless excepted, every article of foreign origin be legibly, permanently, and conspicuously marked to indicate the English name of the country of origin to an ultimate purchaser in the United States. This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Section 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. 177). A copy of this ruling letter should be attached to the entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is imported. If the documents have been filed without a copy, this ruling should be brought to the attention of the Customs officer handling the transaction. Sincerely, Jean F. Maguire Area Director New York Seaport