The tariff classification of footwear from Thailand

NY L80064 October 19, 2004 CLA-2-64:RR:NC:SP:247 L80064 CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 6405.20.30 Mr. John R. Ramirez James G. Wiley Co. P.O. Box 90008 Los Angeles, CA 90009-0008 RE: The tariff classification of footwear from Thailand Dear Mr. Ramirez: In your letter dated September 28, 2004, on behalf of EL Darr Enterprises, you requested a tariff classification ruling. The submitted sample is a pair of over-the-ankle, bootie-type indoor house slippers packed in a clear plastic package with a zipper closure. The slipper has a textile upper which you state has an external surface area material that is of 100% cotton fabric and a separately sewn-on textile material outer sole that is of a man-made textile fleece fabric. The slipper also has a removable textile pillow-like midsole insert that contains, as you state, a “natural herbal” filling or stuffing. This “natural herbal therapy pack pillow” insert is sized and shaped to fit into the slipper’s midsole compartment, which has been specifically designed for it. The “herbal pillow” insert can be easily removed so that it can be heated in a microwave oven. We consider the textile house slipper and the “herbal therapy pack” pillow insert to be a composite good, and it is the slipper that imparts to this item its essential character. The applicable subheading for this indoor slipper with its “natural herbal therapy pack” insert will be 6405.20.30, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS), which provides for other footwear, with uppers of textile material and outer soles of other than rubber, plastics leather or composition leather; in which there is a line of demarcation between the sole and the upper; and in which the upper, by weight, predominately consists of vegetable fibers such as cotton or flax (linings not included). The rate of duty will be 7.5% ad valorem. The marking statute, section 304, Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), provides that, unless excepted, every article of foreign origin (or its container) imported into the U.S. shall be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly and permanently as the nature of the article (or its container) will permit, in such a manner as to indicate to the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. the English name of the country of origin of the article. We note that the sample item indoor slipper that you have provided for this ruling request has not been marked with its country of origin. Therefore, if imported as is, the slipper does not meet the country of origin marking requirements of the marking statute and will be considered not legally marked. This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. 177). A copy of the ruling or the control number indicated above should be provided with the entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is imported. If you have any questions regarding the ruling, contact National Import Specialist Richard Foley at 646-733-3042. Sincerely, Robert B. Swierupski Director, National Commodity Specialist Division