The tariff classification of a women’s outerwear vest from China

N037019 September 18, 2008 CLA-2-62:OT:RR:NC:TA:357 CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 6211.43.0076 Ms. Melissa Fox Barthco International, Inc. 5101 S. Broad St. Philadelphia, PA 19112-1404 RE: The tariff classification of a women’s outerwear vest from China Dear Ms. Fox: In your letter dated August 28, 2008, on behalf of Dress Barn/Maurices Inc., you requested a classification ruling. The sample you submitted is being returned as you requested. The item in question, style 191184DWB, is an outerwear vest with a shell made from a woven polyester fabric completely covered with a diamond-shaped pattern of needlework with embroidery where each row of stitching intersects. This stitching joins the shell with a very thin batting of nonwoven fabric, whose function appears to be primarily to provide resiliency to the garment. The garment also has a full front opening with a zipper closure extending into the standup collar, slant, zippered pockets with welting at the waist, a hemmed bottom, non-functional self-fabric tabs with a metal buckle in the side panels and a woven taffeta fabric lining. Your letter indicates that the shell fabric has a polyurethane coating on the outer surface; however, no coating is detectible on either surface of this fabric. The applicable subheading for the vest will be 6211.43.0076, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for other women’s or girls’ garments of man-made fibers: other vests. The duty rate will be 16 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/. This vest falls within textile category 659. With the exception of certain products of China, quota/visa requirements are no longer applicable for merchandise which is the product of World Trade Organization (WTO) member countries. Quota and visa requirements are the result of international agreements that are subject to frequent renegotiations and changes. To obtain the most current information on quota and visa requirements applicable to this merchandise, we suggest you check, close to the time of shipment, the “Textile Status Report for Absolute Quotas” which is available on our web site at www.cbp.gov. For current information regarding possible textile safeguard actions on goods from China and related issues, we refer you to the web site of the Office of Textiles and Apparel of the Department of Commerce at otexa.ita.doc.gov. 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 William Raftery at (646) 733-3047. Sincerely, Robert B. Swierupski Director National Commodity Specialist Division