COUNTRY OF ORIGIN MARKING OF IMPORTED SHAPEWEAR

N275347 May 16, 2016 MAR-2 OT:RR:NC:3:354 CATEGORY: MARKING Mr. John C. Riccardo John C. Riccardo CHB 175-11 148th Road, Suite 206 Jamaica, NY 11434 RE: COUNTRY OF ORIGIN MARKING OF IMPORTED SHAPEWEAR Dear Mr. Riccardo: This is in response to your letter dated May 2, 2016 requesting a ruling on behalf of your client, Basic Resources, on whether the proposed marking “MADE IN ISRAEL” is an acceptable country of origin marking for imported shapewear if another marking, “with fabric from Italy” appears on the article which is a country or locality other than the actual country of origin of the article. A photocopy of the marking was submitted with your letter for review. The words “MADE IN ISRAEL” appear just above the words “with fabric from Italy”. The black label has white lettering and will be printed onto the garments. In the case where the garment is tan in color, white lettering will also be used. At our request, you sent us a photo of a tan garment currently marked in white lettering and the lettering was clear and easy to read. The font used for the country of origin, Israel, is slightly larger than the font used for the information regarding the fabric. Additionally, the origin marking for the garment is in all capital letters whereas the words, “with fabric from Italy” is in lower case letters. 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. Section 134.46, Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.46), deals with cases in which the words “United States,” or “American,” the letters “U.S.A.,” any variation of such words or letters, or the name of any city or locality in the United States, or the name of any foreign country or locality other than the country or locality in which the article was manufactured or produced, appears on an imported article or its container, and those words, letters or names may mislead or deceive the ultimate purchaser as to the actual country of origin. In such a case, there shall appear, legibly and permanently, in close proximity to such words, letters, or name, and in at least a comparable size, the name of the country of origin preceded by “Made in,” “Product of,” or other words of similar meaning. In order to satisfy the close proximity requirement, the country of origin marking must generally appear on the same side(s) or surface(s) in which the name or locality other than the actual country of origin appears. We find that the identification of the origin of the fabric is not misleading and provides useful information to the consumer. Accordingly, we find the proposed marking of the imported shapewear, as described above, satisfies the marking requirements of 19 U.S.C. 1304 and 19 CFR Part 134 and is an acceptable country of origin marking for the imported shapewear. This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 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, please contact National Import Specialist K. Lenore Calabrese at k.lenore.calabrese@cbp.dhs.gov. Sincerely, Deborah C. Marinucci Acting Director National Commodity Specialist Division