The country of origin of certain naphthenic acids

N352217 November 18, 2025 OT:RR:NC:N3:139 CATEGORY: Origin Kathleen Falls Umicore USA 3600 Glenwood Ave, Suite 250 Raleigh, NC 27612 RE: The country of origin of certain naphthenic acids Dear Ms. Falls: In your letter dated August 9, 2025, you requested a country of origin ruling on naphthenic acid. The information in this ruling request was submitted to our laboratory for review. We regret the delay. Naphthenic acid is defined as “A mixture of saturated fatty acids extracted from petroleum and used to make metallic naphthenates”1 In your submission, you state that crude naphthenic acid streams extracted as the result of petroleum refining in the United States undergo a drying process to remove water and volatile components prior to being exported to a Umicore facility in Belgium. There, the crude naphthenic acid, in a dried state, is fed into an agitated thin film evaporator where it may undergo a further drying process before it is separated from certain heavy organic and inorganic residues via distillation. The distilled naphthenic acid goes through an attached condenser where further waste volatile compounds are separated from the distilled naphthenic acid. At this point, the distilled naphthenic acid is sent back to the United States where it is used in the creation of a variety of industrial products. 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). CBP has generally held that purification processes involving chemical substances in another country, not involving a change in its chemical formula, chemical structure, or Harmonized tariff classification, does not result in a product of such other country. See HQ 113256, N308425. The processes that the subject naphthenic acids go through, particularly those that occur in Belgium, do not cause a chemical reaction nor a change in its structure or character. They merely involve the separation and removal of non naphthenic acid related substances The basic properties of both the naphthenic acids in the processing described above remain essentially unchanged. As no substantial transformation takes place in Belgium, the country of origin of the instant naphthenic acids remain the United States. 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 John Bobel at john.bobel@cbp.dhs.gov. 1 Lewis RJ. Hawley's Condensed Chemical Dictionary, 15th Ed. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2007. Sincerely, (for) Deborah Marinucci Designated Official Performing the Duties of the Division Director National Commodity Specialist Division