The country of origin of screwdrivers.

N310921 April 15, 2020 CLA-2-82:OT:RR:NC:N1:118 CATEGORY: Country of Origin Mr. M. Jason Cunningham Sonnenberg & Cunningham PA 780 Fifth Ave. South Suite 200 Naples FL 34102 RE: The country of origin of screwdrivers. Dear Mr. Cunningham: In your letter dated March 26, 2020, on behalf of your client, Great Star Tools, you requested a ruling on the country of origin of screwdrivers produced in Vietnam and China. The imported screwdrivers are described as “single tip” screwdrivers. Each screwdriver will consist of a shank and head made of steel, and a handle that will be made of either injected plastic, extruded plastic, acetate, wood, or similar material. The screwdriver’s head will be either Phillips, slotted, or Torx. You propose two production scenarios for the screwdrivers. The first scenario begins in Vietnam. Raw steel rods, which may be sourced from Vietnam or globally, are cut to length. Next, the steel cut rods are roughly formed on one end to produce the tip type appropriate for each finished screwdriver (i.e., Phillips, slotted, or Torx). Each screwdriver tip is further machined, cut, and ground to refine the tip into the final screwdriver head, e.g. Phillips, slotted, or Torx. The “wings” are also formed on the opposite end of the screwdriver’s steel shaft, and serve as the mechanical connection point for the handle that will be added after the subject articles are shipped from Vietnam to China. The screwdriver shaft is then sent to China where it is heat treated and coated. Finally, a Chinese origin handle is attached before retail packaging and export to the United States. The second production scenario is similar to the first scenario, except that the rough cut and tipped screwdriver shaft is sent from Vietnam to China for machining, cutting, and grinding to further refine the tips into their final head type, e.g. Phillips, slotted, or Torx. The wings are also formed in China and handles are added prior to retail packaging and export to the United States. Regarding your request for the appropriate country of origin for the finished screwdrivers, 19 C.F.R. § 134.1(b) provides in pertinent part as follows: Country of origin means the country of manufacture, production, or growth of any article of foreign origin entering the United States. Further work or material added to an article in another country must effect a substantial transformation in order to render such other country the “country of origin” within the meaning of this part; The test for determining whether a substantial transformation will occur is whether an article emerges from a process with a new name, character or use, different from that possessed by the article prior to processing. See Texas Instruments Inc. v. United States, 69 C.C.P.A. 151 (1982). This determination is based on the totality of the evidence. See National Hand Tool Corp. v. United States, 16 C.I.T. 308 (1992), aff’d, 989 F.2d 1201 (Fed. Cir. 1993). In order to determine whether a substantial transformation occurs when components of various origins are assembled into completed products, all factors such as the components used to create the product and manufacturing processes that these components undergo are considered in order to determine whether a product with a new name, character and use has been produced. No one factor is decisive, and assembly operations that are minimal will generally not result in a substantial transformation. It is our view that in both scenarios, raw steel is substantially transformed in Vietnam into articles that have the shape, size, and form of the finished screwdriver’s head and steel driving shaft. We note that the second scenario includes additional processing in China, which involves machining, cutting and grinding the rough-cut tips and adding the wings.  However, in both scenarios the screwdriver blades are made in Vietnam. The screwdrivers, which are manufactured in Vietnam, do not become an article with a new, character and use because of the attachments of the handles in China. It is therefore the opinion of this office that the screwdrivers described in both your production scenarios are country of origin Vietnam. 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 Anthony E. Grossi at anthony.e.grossi@cbp.dhs.gov. Sincerely, Steven A. Mack Director National Commodity Specialist Division