Surgical instruments; GRI 1; EN 90.18

HQ 952997 December 14, 1992 CLA-2 CO:R:C:M 952997 KCC CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 9018.90.80 Mr. B.J. Kalman Fine Surgical Instrument Corp. 741 Peninsula Boulevard Hempstead, New York 11550 RE: Surgical instruments; GRI 1; EN 90.18 Dear Mr. Kalman: This is in response to your letter dated October 6, 1992, to Customs in New York, regarding the proper marking and tariff classification of surgical instruments under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). Your letter and samples were forwarded to this office for a response. Your question regarding the proper marking of the surgical instruments will be addressed by the Marking and Value Branch under separate cover. FACTS: The articles under consideration are two surgical instruments, a 9 1/2 inch sponge forceps and a 7 1/4 inch Rochester Ochsner. The surgical instruments are manufactured from German forgings which are processed in Pakistan into completed surgical instruments and then shipped to the U.S. ISSUE: What is the proper tariff classification of the surgical instruments under the HTSUS? LAW AND ANALYSIS: The classification of merchandise under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States is governed by the General Rules of Interpretation (GRI's). GRI 1, HTSUS, states in part that "for legal purposes, classification shall be determined according to the terms of the heading and any relative section or chapter notes...." Heading 9018, HTSUS, provides for instruments and appliances used in medical, surgical, dental or veterinary sciences. Explanatory Note (EN) 90.18 of the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System (HCDCS) states that "[t]his heading covers a very wide range of instruments and appliances which, in the vast majority of cases, are used only in professional practice (e.g., by doctors, surgeons, dentists, veterinary surgeons, midwives), either to make a diagnosis, to prevent or treat an illness or to operate, etc." EN 90.18 continues: It should also be noted that a number of the instruments used in medicine or surgery (human or veterinary) are, in effect, tools (e.g., hammers, mallets, saws, chisels, gouges, forceps, pliers, spatulae, etc.), or articles of cutlery (scissors, knives, shears, etc.). Such articles are classified in this heading only when they are clearly identifiable as being for medical or surgical use by reason of their special shape, the ease with which they are dismantled for sterilisation, their better quality manufacture, the nature of the constituent metal or by their get-up (frequently packed in cases or boxes containing a set of instruments for a particular treatment: childbirth, autopsies, gynaecology, eye or ear surgery, veterinary cases for parturition, etc.). HCDCS, Vol. 4, p. 1487-1488. The Explanatory Notes, although not dispositive, are to be examined when interpreting the HTSUS. 54 Fed. Reg. 35127, 35128 (Aug. 23, 1989). In this case, the subject instruments satisfy the description in EN 90.18. The information and samples provided indicate that the instruments are for medical and surgical use. In addition, the special design and shape of the instruments and their manufacture from stainless steel indicate their use in surgical procedures. More specifically, the surgical instruments under consideration are properly classified under subheading 9018.90.80, HTSUS, which provides for "Instruments and appliances used in medical, surgical, dental or veterinary sciences, including scintigraphic apparatus, other electro-medical apparatus and sight-testing instruments; parts and accessories thereof...Other instruments and appliances and parts and accessories thereof...Other...Other." HOLDING: The surgical instruments are properly classified under subheading 9018.90.80, HTSUS, which provides for "Instruments and appliances used in medical, surgical, dental or veterinary sciences, including scintigraphic apparatus, other electro- medical apparatus and sight-testing instruments; parts and accessories thereof...Other instruments and appliances and parts and accessories thereof...Other...Other", with duty at the Column 1, General, rate of 7.9 percent ad valorem. Sincerely, John Durant, Director Commercial Rulings Division