The tariff classification of a straw placemat from the Philippines

N006502 March 6, 2007 CLA-2-46:RR:NC:2:230 CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 4602.19.8000 Mr. Joseph R. Hoffacker Barthco Trade Consultants The Navy Yard 5101 S. Broad St. Philadelphia, PA 19112-1404 RE: The tariff classification of a straw placemat from the Philippines Dear Mr. Hoffacker: In your letter dated February 5, 2007, on behalf of the importer, Sugartown Worldwide Inc., you requested a tariff classification ruling. The ruling was requested on a product identified as the “Shell We Eat Placemat”, style # 65752. A sample of the product was submitted, which will be returned to you as you requested. The sample consists of a round 16” diameter mat made of strips of straw. The straw strips are plaited into a long braid, which is wound around and sewn to form the placemat. The placemat is lined on the bottom with a textile fabric and it is decorated on the top with assorted seashell designs made of dyed cornhusk. The applicable subheading for the straw placemat, style # 65752, will be 4602.19.8000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for other articles made directly to shape from plaiting materials, of other (non-enumerated) vegetable materials, other than wickerwork. The duty rate will be 2.3 percent ad valorem. Duty rates are provided for your convenience and are subject to change. The text of the most recent HTSUS and the accompanying duty rates are provided on World Wide Web at http://www.usitc.gov/tata/hts/. Articles classifiable under subheading 4602.19.8000, HTSUS, which are products of the Philippines may be entitled to duty free treatment under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) upon compliance with all applicable regulations. The GSP is subject to modification and periodic suspension, which may affect the status of your transaction at the time of entry for consumption or withdrawal from warehouse. To obtain current information on GSP, check our Web site at www.cbp.gov and search for the term "GSP". The sample submitted was not marked with the country of origin. Section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1304), provides that, unless excepted, every article of foreign origin imported into the U.S. shall be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly, and permanently as the nature of the article (or 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. 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 Paul Garretto at 646-733-3035. Sincerely, Robert B. Swierupski Director, National Commodity Specialist Division