The country of origin of a shovel

N346340 March 11, 2025 OT:RR:NC:N1:118 CATEGORY: Origin Gilbert Knoop Seymour Midwest LLC 2666 South Country Club RoadWarsaw, IN 46580 RE:  The country of origin of a shovel Dear Mr. Knoop: In your letter dated February 27, 2025, you requested a country of origin determination on a shovel, SKU 49130, for purposes of Section 301 duties.  Pictures and descriptions of the manufacturing process were included in your submission. The shovel is comprised of a steel head that is attached to a wood handle with rivets.  The manufacturing process begins in China, where metal plate is stamped into a flat outline of the shovel head.  It is then sent to Cambodia, where is heated and shaped into the final form of the shovel head.  This includes rolling and bending the steel to form the blade of the shovel, its scooped shape and the socket that accommodates the handle.  The fully formed head is then heat-treated, polished and assembled with a Cambodian-origin wood handle.  Finally, the finished shovel is packaged for retail sale for export to the United States. When determining the country of origin for purposes of applying current trade remedies under Section 301, the substantial transformation analysis is applicable. See, e.g., Headquarters Ruling Letter H301619, dated November 6, 2018. 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, 681 F.2d 778 (C.C.P.A. 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 considering your manufacturing scenario, there is no dispute that the outline of the shovel head, which is stamped from metal plate in China, is dedicated for use in the finished shovel.  However, while this is a consideration, it does not assure a finding of substantial transformation.  Based upon the photographs you provided, the piece of flat stamped metal plate is neither clearly recognizable as a shovel head nor in the final form of a shovel head.  It is our view that rolling and bending the steel to form the shovel head provides the essence of the finished shovel.  This includes rolling and bending the steel to form the blade of the shovel, its scooped shape and the socket that accommodates the handle. Therefore, the totality of the circumstances leads our office to conclude that the country of origin of the finished shovel is Cambodia. The holding set forth above applies only to the specific factual situation and merchandise description as identified in the ruling request. This position is clearly set forth in Title 19, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Section 177.9(b)(1). This section states that a ruling letter is issued on the assumption that all of the information furnished in the ruling letter, whether directly, by reference, or by implication, is accurate and complete in every material respect. In the event that the facts are modified in any way, or if the goods do not conform to these facts at time of importation, you should bring this to the attention of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and submit a request for a new ruling in accordance with 19 CFR 177.2. Additionally, we note that the material facts described in the foregoing ruling may be subject to periodic verification by CBP. This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs and Border Protection 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, please contact National Import Specialist Anthony Grossi at anthony.e.grossi@cbp.dhs.gov. Sincerely, Steven A. Mack Director National Commodity Specialist Division