Oct. 17 CBP Bulletin Proposes to Revoke Rulings on Clothes Steamers, Solar Panels' Country of Origin
In the Oct. 17 Customs Bulletin (Vol. 52, No. 42), CBP published notices that propose to revoke rulings and similar treatment for clothes steamers and solar panels.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Timely, relevant coverage of court proceedings and agency rulings involving tariffs, classification, valuation, origin and antidumping and countervailing duties. Each day, Trade Law Daily subscribers receive a daily headline email, in-depth PDF edition and access to all relevant documents via our trade law source document library and website.
Comments on Proposals Due Nov. 16
CBP said consideration will be given to any written comments received by Nov. 16 before taking this action. In addition, any party who has received a ruling or decision on the merchandise that is subject to the proposed revocations or modifications, or any party involved with a substantially identical transaction, should advise CBP by the date that written comments on the proposed ruling are due. (An importer's failure to advise CBP of such rulings, decisions or substantially identical transactions may raise issues of reasonable care on the part of the importer or its agents for importations subsequent to the effective date of the final decision in this notice.)
Proposals
CBP is proposing to revoke or modify the rulings below, and any rulings on these products that may exist but have not been specifically identified. CBP is also proposing to revoke any treatment it has previously accorded to substantially identical transactions.
Clothes Steamer
| Item: An electric hand-held clothes steamer with a water reservoir and a cap with ten steam outlet holes |
| Current: 8516.10.0080, Free, “Other instantaneous electric water heaters and immersion heaters.” |
| Proposed: 8516.79.00, 2.7%, “Other electrothermic appliances of a kind used for domestic purposes; . . .: Other electrothermic appliances: Other.” |
| Reason: Since the primary function of the clothes steamer is the application of steam to fabric and not the heating of water, we find that the clothes steamer is not a water or immersion heater, CBP said. |
| Proposed for revocation: NY N258858 (2014) |
| Proposed new ruling: HQ H300545 |
Solar Panels
| Item: Solar panels that are assembled in China using both Chinese and non-Chinese components |
| Current: China is the country of origin. |
| Proposed: Germany is the country of origin |
| Reason: The polycrystalline solar cells, which constitute the very essence of the solar panels, are entirely manufactured in Germany, CBP said. Solar cells do not lose their identity and become an integral part of the solar panels when they are combined with other components during the processing in China. The solar cells and other components are not substantially transformed by the processing in China, and thus the country of origin of the solar panels is Germany, the agency said. |
| Proposed for modification: NY N227976 (2012) |
| Proposed new ruling: HQ H298653 |