The country of origin of a hand trowel and hand rake

N325531 May 4, 2022 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 a hand trowel and hand rake Dear Mr. Cunningham: In your letter dated April 19, 2022, on behalf of your client, Great Star Industrial USA, LLC, you requested a ruling on the country of origin of a hand trowel and hand rake. You have stated that each of these articles is produced in Vietnam and finished in China. Both subject articles are hand tools made primarily of long, bulk, raw aluminum ingots. The hand trowel consists of a pointed, scoop-shaped metal digging blade and plastic- coated handle for comfort. The hand rake is comprised of three tines that are bent approximately 90 degrees at roughly 1.5 inches from the end. The tool also incorporates a short metal handle with a plastic coating. The production-processing scenario for the hand trowel begins in Vietnam, where raw aluminum ingot is heated to its melting point, then diecast using a mold that makes two hand trowels at a time. The two hand trowels exit the die mold physically connected to each other. The trowels are then cropped and deburred so that each hand trowel blank is separated. The individual hand trowels are sent to China for finishing and assembly, which consists of polishing the blank from Vietnam, forming and attaching the plastic handle cover, and retail packaging. The production-processing scenario for the hand rake also begins in Vietnam. Raw aluminum ingot is heated to its melting point, then diecast using a mold that makes two hand rakes at a time. The two hand rakes exit the die mold physically connected to each other. The hand rakes are then cropped and deburred so that each hand rake blank is separated. After processing in Vietnam, the hand rakes are sent to China for finishing and assembly. This consists of polishing the blank from Vietnam, forming and attaching the plastic handle cover, and retail packaging. Regarding your request for the appropriate country of origin of the two hand tools, 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 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 production processing scenarios, raw aluminum is substantially transformed in Vietnam into the essential form and function of the finished rake or trowel. This imparts the essential essence to the final product. The design characteristics, when exported from Vietnam, indicate that the article is dedicated for use as either a hand rake or hand trowel. The Chinese processing primarily consisting of polishing and simple assembly of a handle cover to the tool. It does not substantially transform the Vietnamese tools. Therefore, it is the opinion of this office that the hand trowel and hand rake described in your proposed production-processing 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