The tariff classification of a Painting Kit from China

N258552 November 6, 2014 CLA-2-32:OT:RR:NC:2:236 CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 3213.10.0000 Mr. Bob Sanshuk C. H. Robinson International, Inc., CHB 1501 N. Mittel Blvd., Suite A Wood Dale, IL 60191 RE: The tariff classification of a Painting Kit from China Dear Mr. Sanshuk: In your ruling request received October 22, 2014, on behalf of your client, Early Childhood Resources, you requested a tariff classification ruling on a Painting Kit. Your submitted sample has been reviewed and will be returned, as requested. You refer to the product at issue as “Learn Your Colors Paint Crate 27 pc. Set.” You state that this kit is intended to be used by children and will be packaged ready for retail sale to the consumer at time of importation. The kit consists of seven different colors of washable tempura paints in eight ounce plastic bottles, three plastic foam paint brushes with molded plastic handles, two plastic foam paint rollers with molded plastic handles, seven “artist-type” paint brushes with plastic handles, seven plastic paint cups with lids, and one collapsible plastic crate for storage of these components. The Explanatory Notes to the Harmonized Tariff System, although not legally binding, provide guidance in the interpretation of the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System at the international level. Explanatory Note X to GRI 3 (b) provides that the term "goods put up in sets for retail sale" means goods that; (a) consist of at least two different articles which are, prima facie, classifiable in different headings; (b) consist of articles put up together to meet a particular need or carry out a specific activity; and (c) are put up in a manner suitable for sale directly to users without re-packing. Goods classifiable under GRI 3 (b) are classified as if they consisted of the material or component which gives them their essential character, which may be determined by the nature of the material or component, its bulk, quantity, weight or value, or by the role of a constituent material in relation to the use of the article. GRI 3 (c) provides that when goods cannot be classified by reference to GRI 3 (a) or 3 (b), they are to be classified in the heading that occurs last in numerical order among those which equally merit consideration. The “Learn Your Colors Paint Crate 27 pc. Set” will be classified as a set for tariff classification purposes in accordance with GRI 3(b), with the essential character imparted by the paints. The applicable subheading for the “Learn Your Colors Paint Crate 27 pc. Set” will be 3213.10.0000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for Artists’, students’ or signboard painters’ colors, modifying tints, amusement colors and the like, in tablets, tubes, jars, bottles, pans or in similar forms or packings: Colors in sets. The general rate of duty will be 6.5 percent ad valorem on the entire set. This merchandise may be subject to the requirements of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), which are administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Information on the TSCA can be obtained by contacting the EPA at 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Mail Code 70480, Washington, D.C., by telephone at (202) 554-1404, or by visiting their website at www.epa.gov. 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 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 Nuccio Fera at nucciofera@cbp.dhs.gov. Sincerely, Gwenn Klein Kirschner Director National Commodity Specialist Division