The tariff classification of a cocktail table and end tables from Taiwan.

N274025 April 19, 2016 CLA-2-94:OT:RR:NC:N4:433 CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 9403.89.6015 Denise N. Yapp Customs Classification Specialist Ashley Furniture Industries, Inc. One Ashley Way Arcadia, WI 54612 RE: The tariff classification of a cocktail table and end tables from Taiwan. Dear Ms. Yapp: In your letter dated March 17, 2016, you requested a tariff classification ruling. Illustrative literature was furnished. Item number T4063 is described as the “3-in-1 pack occasional table set.” Depicted photo indicates that the item includes one rectangular cocktail table and two square end tables, all of which are stated to be packed into one carton. The three tables have a consistent design, each table having a tubular metal frame, upper glass tabletop and lower glass shelf, and four legs made of wood. The wooden legs have a three-dimensional appearance. Company provided information indicates that: (1) the weight of the glass tabletop and shelf only marginally exceeds the weight of the wooden legs, while the weight of the metal frame is noteworthy when compared against the weight of the glass tabletop and shelf, and wooden legs, and (2) the cost of the wooden legs far exceeds the cost of the metal frame, and glass tabletop and shelf. When interpreting and implementing the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), the Explanatory Notes (ENs) of the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System may be utilized. The ENs, while neither legally binding nor dispositive, provide a guiding commentary on the scope of each heading, and are generally indicative of the proper interpretation of the HTSUS. CBP believes the ENs should always be consulted. See T.D. 89-80, 54 Fed. Reg. 35127, 35128 (August 23, 1989). In the United States Court of International Trade, The Home Depot, U.S.A., Inc., v. the United States, Slip Op. 06-49, Court No. 00-00061, dated April 7, 2006, the Court considered all factors in evidence to determine essential character and that these factors were to be reviewed as a whole. See Slip Op. 06-49, for a listing of factors reviewed. Consistent with The Home Depot case, we will consider all facts as presented, assign weight to those facts, and if possible decide which of the constituent materials or components impart the essential character to the merchandise concerned. The tables of the “3-in-1 pack occasional table set” are composed of different components (glass, wood and metal) and are considered composite goods for tariff purposes. The Explanatory Notes (ENs) to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), GRI 3 (b) (VIII), state that “the factor which determines essential character will vary between different kinds of goods. It may for example, be determined by the nature of the materials or components, its bulk, quantity, weight or value, or by the role of a constituent material in relation to the use of the goods.” When the essential character of a composite good can be determined, the whole product is classified as if it consisted only of the material or component that imparts the essential character to the composite good. The Online Oxford English Dictionary (OED) defines a “table” as a piece of furniture consisting of a raised flat top of wood, stone, or other solid material, supported on one or more legs, and providing a level surface for working at or on which to place things for various purposes. Specifically in regard to the glass tabletop and shelf of the merchandise concerned, we recognize that the role of the constituent material in relation to the use of the good is only one factor in an essential character analysis – see Home Depot. Not only does the glass tabletop and shelf provide for the functionality of the tables, which is the placement of objects upon or placement of food and/or drink upon, but the glass tabletop and shelf are heavier than the wooden legs and metal frame of the merchandise concerned. Moreover, the glass tabletop and shelf of the merchandise concerned contribute to the largest single surface area depicting the appearance of glass tables, framed in metal and ornamented with wooden legs. Accordingly, the essential character of the tables is imparted by the glass tabletop and glass shelf. The ENs to the HTSUS, General Rules of Interpretation, at GRI 3 (b), X, 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 repacking. Goods classifiable as “sets” under GRI 3 (b) of the HTSUS are classified as if they consisted of the component or components taken together, which can be regarded as conferring on the set as a whole its essential character – see EN X to the General Rules of Interpretation. It is our position that the “3-in-1 pack occasional table set” is not a “set” for tariff purposes, in that all of the tables are classified in the same tariff provision of subheading 9403.89.60 of the HTSUS. Consequently, each table is classified separately. The applicable subheading for the three tables of the merchandise concerned will be 9403.89.6015, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for “Other furniture and parts thereof: Furniture of other materials, including cane, osier, bamboo or similar materials: Other: Other: Other household.” The rate of duty will be free. 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 Neil H. Levy at neil.h.levy@cbp.dhs.gov. Sincerely, Deborah Marinucci Acting Director National Commodity Specialist Division