United States International Trade Commision Rulings And Harmonized Tariff Schedule
faqs.org  Rulings By Number  Rulings By Category  Tariff Numbers
faqs.org > Rulings and Tariffs Home > Rulings By Number > 1994 HQ Rulings > HQ 0955731 - HQ 0955819 > HQ 0955754

Previous Ruling Next Ruling



HQ 955754


August 22, 1994

CLA-2 CO:R:C:F 955754 K

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF No.: 2936.21.0000

Lawrence D. Blume, Esq.
Graham & James
2000 M Street, N.W., Suite 700
Washington, D.C. 20036-3307

RE: Revocation of New York Ruling Letter (NYRL) 851655; Microvit A 500 S, Microvit A 650, And Microvit A 750

Dear Sir:

In your letter dated September 28, 1993, you requested that we reconsider NYRL 851655, dated May 8, 1990, issued to your client, Rhone-Poulenc, Inc., that held that the above-referenced products from France were classified as medicaments consisting of two or more constituents which have been mixed together for therapeutic or prophylactic uses, not put up in measured doses or packings for retail sale, in subheading 3003.90.0000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) with duty at the general rate of 6 percent ad valorem. This letter is to inform you that NYRL 851655 no longer reflects the views of the Customs Service and is revoked in accordance with section 177.9(d) of the Customs Regulations (19 CFR 177.9(d)). Pursuant to section 625, Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1625), as amended by section 623 of Title VI (Customs Modernization) of the North American Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act, Pub. L. 103-182, 107 Stat. 2057, 2186 (1993) (hereinafter, section 625), notice of the proposed revocation of NYRL 851655 was published on July 13, 1994, in the Customs Bulletin, Volume 28, Number 28. The following represents our position.

FACTS:

Each product, Microvit A 500 S, Microvit A 650, and Microvit A 750, consists of a single active ingredient, Vitamin A acetate coated with gelatin, lactose, and an antioxidant (BHT), as a stabilizer. The products are used in the manufacture of animal feeds.

ISSUE:

The issue is whether the products described above are classifiable in heading 3003 or heading 2936, HTSUS.

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

Headquarters Ruling Letter (HRL) 953829, dated July 26, 1993, concerned similar issues and controls our decisions for the above described products. HRL 953829 revoked the decision in NYRL 839134, dated April 27, 1989, which held that similar coated vitamins were excluded from heading 2936. The revocation ruling noted that the notes to heading 2936, Explanatory Notes to the Harmonized Commodity and Coding System (which represent the official interpretation of the tariff at the international level) were changed, effective February 1992, to read as follows.

The products of this heading [2936] may be stabilised for the purposes of preservation or transport: - by adding anti-oxidants,
- by adding anti-caking agents (e.g., carbohydrates), - by coating with appropriate substances (e.g., gelatin, waxes or fats), whether or not plasticised, or - by absorbing on appropriate substances (e.g., silicic acid), provided that the quantity added or the processing in no case exceeds that necessary for their preservation or transport and that the addition or processing does not alter the character of the basic product and render it particularly suitable for specific use rather than for general use.

Because of the coating, the vitamins in NYRL 839134, were considered finished products and prepared for a specific use. However, in HRL 953829, based on the changes in the Explanatory Notes, we held that the coating of the vitamins did not render the vitamins particularly suitable for specific use, rather than a general use and that the vitamins were classified in heading 2936. We reach the same conclusion for the vitamins in question. Each of the products contains a single active ingredient, Vitamin A acetate, and the coatings stabilize the products for the purposes of preservation or transport. Accordingly, the products are classifiable in heading 2936, and in particular, in subheading 2936.21.0000, HTSUS.

HOLDING:

Products known as Microvit A 500 S, Microvit A 650, and Microvit A 750, each of which contains a single active ingredient, Vitamin A, coated with gelatin, lactose, and with an antioxidant as a stabilizer, that are used in the production of animal feeds, are classified in subheading 2936.21.0000, HTSUS, as Vitamin A and their derivatives, unmixed, with duty at the general rate of 3.1 percent ad valorem.

Pursuant to 19 CFR 177.9(d), NYRL 851655 is revoked.

In accordance with section 625, this ruling will become effective 60 days from the date of its publication in the Customs Bulletin. Publication of rulings or decisions pursuant to section 625 does not constitute a change of practice or position in accordance with section 177.10(c)(1), Customs Regulations (19 CFR

Sincerely,

John Durant, Director

Previous Ruling Next Ruling

See also: