The country of origin of a skateboard tool

N316103 December 4, 2020 CLA-2-82:OT:RR:NC:N1:118 CATEGORY: Country of Origin Neil S. Helfand Grunfeld, Desiderio, Lebowitz, Silverman & Klestadt LLP 599 Lexington Avenue FL 36 New York, NY 10022 RE: The country of origin of a skateboard tool Dear Mr. Helfand: In your letter dated November 24, 2020, on behalf of your client, Paris Truck Company, you requested a ruling on the country of origin of a skateboard tool. The multifunctional tool is used for general skateboard maintenance. It allows the user to adjust axle nuts, mounting hardware, and the kingpin nut on the top of the skateboard. The tool incorporates three different sizes of sockets (i.e., 3/8", 1/2" and 9/16") and a slide-out Phillips offset screwdriver, which fits into the top of the tool’s handle when not in use. You state that all of the components to the skateboard tool will be fully manufactured in Taiwan (e.g., casting, welding, finishing, etc.). The components will also be assembled in Taiwan into the finished skateboard tool. The skateboard tool will subsequently be transported to China for retail packaging and then exported to the United States. With regard to your request for the appropriate country of origin of the skateboard tool, 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 and 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 are considered in order to conclude whether a product with a new name, character, and use has been produced. These factors include the components used to create the product and manufacturing processes that these components undergo. No one factor is decisive, and minimal processing and/or assembly operations will generally not result in a substantial transformation. In the instant case, each component of the skateboard tool is wholly produced and manufactured in Taiwan. The components are also assembled into the finished skateboard tool in Taiwan. The only operations taking place in China are packaging operations. These operations do not substantially transform the article into a product with new name, character or use. Therefore, it is the opinion of this office that the skateboard tool described in your request is country of origin Taiwan. 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