The country of origin and marking of Body Spray Mists

N350030 July 9, 2025 OT:RR:NC:N3:140 CATEGORY: Origin, Marking Kristina Barry GDLSK LLP 599 Lexington Avenue, Fl 36 New York, NY 10022 RE: The country of origin and marking of Body Spray Mists Dear Ms. Barry: In your letter dated June 10, 2025, on behalf of your client, Fujian Haojin Toiletries Ltd, you requested a country of origin and marking ruling on Body Spray Mists. The Body Spray Mists will consist of a single fragrance supplied from either Singapore or Thailand. The perfume base will be shipped to China where it will be blended with alcohol, propylene glycol and water. You indicate that the blending process does not involve any chemical reactions and that it simply decreases the viscosity of the fragrance so that it may be applied via a spray mechanism. After the blending process, the solution may be left standing for a certain specified period, in other cases it is cooled to a prescribed temperature and filtered before packaging. The final blend is packaged in China into either pump spray bottles or aerosol spray cans in which case propellants are also added. All packaging materials (bottles, caps, cans, and cartons) originate in China. When determining the country of origin, the substantial transformation analysis is applicable. See, e.g., Headquarters Ruling Letter (“HQ”) 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). Additionally, 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). Part 134 of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) Regulations (19 CFR 134) implements the country of origin marking requirements and exceptions of 19 U.S.C. 1304. Section 134.1(b), CBP Regulations (19 CFR 134.1(b)), defines “country of origin” as 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 the marking laws and regulations. While the finished fragrances are made suitable for spraying by diluting the fragrance base, they retain the same chemical identity and character as the precursor base. In this case, the changes in concentration and viscosity which occur in China, do not result in a substantial transformation for origin purposes. It is our opinion that the country of origin of the body spray mists will be Singapore or Thailand. We find that the proposed marking of the body spray mists as "Product of Singapore" or "Product of Thailand" if printed legibly, clearly, and in a conspicuous place would be considered an acceptable method of marking and would meet the country of origin marking requirements of 19 U.S.C. 1304 and 19 CFR Part 134. Since the body spray mists are incapable of being marked, they are excepted (19 CFR Section 134.32(a)). Accordingly marking the outermost container in which the body spray mists are imported and sold to the ultimate purchaser is an acceptable country of origin marking. In your request, you asked whether the body spray mists will be subject to the additional duties imposed upon Chinese goods pursuant to U.S. Note 2(u) to Subchapter III, Chapter 99, and Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. Currently, these duties only apply to articles that are products of the People’s Republic of China. Therefore, the body spray mists will not be subject to the additional duties imposed by U.S. Note 2(u) to Subchapter III, Chapter 99, and Section 301. You also asked whether the body spray mists will be subject to the “Reciprocal Tariffs.” Effective April 5, 2025, Executive Orders implemented “Reciprocal Tariffs.” All imported merchandise must be reported with either the Chapter 99 provision under which the reciprocal tariff applies or one of the Chapter 99 provisions covering exceptions to the reciprocal tariffs. At this time products from all countries will be subject to an additional 10 percent ad valorem rate of duty. This merchandise may be subject to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and/or The Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002 (The Bioterrorism Act), which are administered by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Information on the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, as well as The Bioterrorism Act, can be obtained by calling the FDA at 1-888-463-6332, or by visiting their website at www.fda.gov. 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 Merari Ortiz at merari.ortiz@cbp.dhs.gov. Sincerely, (for) James Forkan Acting Director National Commodity Specialist Division