The marking of footwear uppers from the Dominican Republic

N324988 April 21, 2022 CLA-2-64:OT:RR:NC:N2:247 CATEGORY: Marking Mr. David P. Dixon Rocky Brands, Inc. 39 East Canal Street Nelsonville, Ohio 45764 RE: The marking of footwear uppers from the Dominican Republic Dear Mr. Dixon: In your letter dated March 23, 2022, you requested a marking ruling for formed uppers. You have submitted descriptive literature and photographs of the formed uppers as well as the complete boot processed from them. No sample was submitted with your request. The unformed uppers, style # RKK0386, are made from various materials from originating and non-originating countries, manufactured into a formed upper in the Dominican Republic (DR). Leather is imported from the United States to the DR where it is tanned, cut to shape, and sewn together using thread from the US. Reinforcers imported from China are attached to the upper with adhesives sourced from the U.S. and Brazil. The toe box and counter are from Great Britain. The upper is lasted and formed using heat and stapled to an insole board. The upper takes the shape of the foot in the DR and is considered to have the very essence of completed footwear. The F.O.B. value from the DR is $39.37 per pair. The formed upper is shipped to Puerto Rico (PR). After importation, the outer sole is attached, trimmed, and polished, the footbed is inserted, the shoelace and hang tags are attached, and the finished product is boxed. The attachment of the outer sole to the formed upper is considered assembly and not substantial transformation. (Uniroyal Inc. v. United States, 3 CIT 220, 542 F. Supp. 1026 (1982), aff'd, 702 F.2d 1022 (Fed Cir. 1983)). Therefore, the Dominican Republic would be the acceptable country of origin for the marking of each of the formed uppers and each boot of the completed pair. Section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. § 1304), provides that unless excepted, every article of foreign origin imported into the United States 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 United States, the English name of the country of origin of the article. Congressional intent in enacting 19 U.S.C. § 1304 was “that the ultimate purchaser should be able to know by an inspection of the marking on the imported goods the country of which the goods is the product. The evident purpose is to mark the goods so that at the time of purchase the ultimate purchaser may, by knowing where the goods were produced, be able to buy or refuse to buy them, if such marking should influence his will.” See United States v. Friedlander & Co., 27 C.C.P.A. 297, 302 (1940). As provided in section 134.41(b), Customs Regulations (19 CFR 134.41(b)), the country-of-origin marking is considered conspicuous if the ultimate purchaser in the U.S. can find the marking easily and read it without strain. In order to ensure that the marking is conspicuous, the country of origin must appear on each shoe in a pair. If the marking on the tongue, inside the shaft, foot bed, or external area is not legible, indelible, or permanent enough, hang tags may be used. They must be attached in a conspicuous place and in a manner which assures that unless deliberately removed, they will remain on the article until it reaches the ultimate purchaser. 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 https://hts.usitc.gov/current. 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 Stacey Kalkines at stacey.kalkines@cbp.dhs.gov. Sincerely, Steven A. Mack Director National Commodity Specialist Division