H305273

H305273 July 24, 2025 OT:RR:CTF:EMAIN H305273 PF CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: 3926.40.00 Daniel Miers King Sailfish Mounts 5881 N.E. 14th Avenue Fort Lauderdale, FL 33334 RE: Tariff Classification of Unfinished Fiberglass Fish Blanks from China Dear Mr. Miers: This is in reply to your request for a prospective ruling under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) for unfinished fiberglass fish blanks (subject merchandise). Your request was forwarded by the National Commodity Specialist Division to this office for a response. FACTS: The products at issue are unfinished fiberglass fish blanks. These items are molded overseas using fiberglass and epoxy resin, then shipped to the United States, where they are hand-finished and painted by marine artists. The fish blanks are not designed to be taken apart or labeled to show the internal organs of the fish. The complete product is a highly realistic, anatomically correct replica of specific marine species, created to full scale and built for public display and decorative appeal. While some of the unfinished fiberglass blanks are installed in museums and aquariums, the majority are used by conservation-minded anglers and brands who display them in public or commercial settings as visual representations of ethical fishing practices. You also note that in some cases, the mounts are used in educational exhibits with signage or supplementary materials, but in many cases, their role is purely visual, allowing viewers to appreciate the form, scale, and beauty of a species without harming the animal. ISSUE: Whether the subject merchandise is classified in heading 3926, HTSUS, as other plastic articles, or in heading 9023, HTSUS, as demonstrational instruments. LAW AND ANALYSIS: GRI 1 requires that classification be determined first according to the terms of the headings of the tariff schedule and any relative section or chapter notes. In the event that the goods cannot be classified solely on the basis of GRI 1, and if the heading and legal notes do not otherwise require, the remaining GRIs 2 through 6 may then be applied in order. GRI 2(a) provides the following: Any reference in a heading to an article shall be taken to include a reference to that article incomplete or unfinished, provided that, as entered, the incomplete or unfinished article has the essential character of the complete or finished article. It shall also include a reference to that article complete or finished (or falling to be classified as complete or finished by virtue of this rule), entered unassembled or disassembled. The HTSUS provisions under consideration are as follows: 3926 Other articles of plastics and articles of other materials of headings 3901 to 3914 3926.40 .00 Statuettes and other ornamental articles… * * * 9023.00.00 Instruments, apparatus and models, designed for demonstrational purposes (for example, in education or exhibitions), unsuitable for other uses, and parts and accessories thereof… Note 2 to Chapter 39 states the following, in relevant part: This chapter does not cover: (u) Articles of chapter 90 (for example, optical elements, spectacle frames, drawing instruments)…. In understanding the language of the HTSUS, the Explanatory Notes (“ENs”) of the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System, which constitute the official interpretation of the HTSUS at the international level, may be utilized. The ENs, although not dispositive or legally binding, provide a commentary on the scope of each heading, and are generally indicative of the proper interpretation of the HTSUS. See T.D. 89-80, 54 Fed. Reg. 35127 (August 23, 1989). Heading 9023 describes “instruments, apparatus and models” which are “designed for demonstrational purposes” and are “unsuitable for other uses.” EN 90.23 states, in relevant part, as follows: This heading covers a wide range of instruments, apparatus and models designed for demonstrational purposes (e.g., in schools, lecture rooms, exhibitions) and unsuitable for other uses. Subject to this proviso, the heading includes: 2 (1) Special demonstrational machines or appliances such as the Wimshurst machine (for experiments with electricity), the Atwood machine (for demonstrating the law of gravity), Magdeburg hemispheres (for demonstrating the effects of atmospheric pressure), the Gravesande ring (for demonstrating thermal expansion), Newton’s disc (for demonstrating the colour composition of white light). (2) Models of human or animal anatomies (whether or not articulated or fitted with electric lighting); models of stereometric bodies, of crystals, etc. Models of this kind are usually made of plastics or of compositions based on plaster. (3) Training dummies, constituting an inflatable life?size model of the human body with artificial respiratory parts reproducing those of a human being; used for training in the “kiss?of?life” revival method. (4) Cross?sectional models of ships, locomotives, engines, etc., cut to show their internal operation or the functioning of an important part; panels showing, in relief, for example, the assembly of a radio (for radiotelegraphists’ schools), or the oil circulation in an engine, etc., whether or not fitted with an electric lighting system. (5) Show?cases and exhibit panels, etc., displaying samples of raw materials (textile fibres, woods, etc.), or showing the various stages of manufacture or processing of a product (for instruction in technical schools). (6) Models, etc., for artillery training, used in training courses held indoors. (7) Prepared slides for microscopic study. (8) Models of towns, public monuments, houses, etc. (of plaster, paperboard, wood, etc.). (9) Small scale demonstrational models (of aircraft, ships, machines, etc.) generally of metal or wood (e.g., for advertising purposes, etc.). It should, however, be noted that models suitable solely for ornamental purposes are classified in their respective headings. * * * Chapter 39, Note 2(u) states that articles of Chapter 90 cannot be classified in Chapter 39. As such, our initial analysis is whether the subject merchandise is classifiable as an instrument, apparatus or model, designed for demonstrational purposes of heading 9023, HTSUS. Heading 9023 and EN 90.23 make clear that articles of heading 9023 are those designed for “demonstrational purposes” to the exclusion of all other uses. The term “demonstrational” is not defined in the HTSUS and must therefore be construed in accordance with its common meaning, which may be ascertained by reference to “standard lexicographic and scientific authorities” and to the pertinent ENs. See GRK Can., Ltd. v. United States, 761 F.3d 1354, 1357 (Fed. Cir. 2014). Dictionary definitions of “demonstrate” and “demonstration” previously cited by CBP for this purpose indicate that, in the context of “education” or “exhibits,” “demonstrational” denotes an inherent capacity to illustrate certain concepts, functions, processes, etc. See, e.g., Headquarters Ruling Letter (HQ) H266154, dated February 23, 2016 3 and HQ H042579, dated October 27, 2010 (both citing Oxford English Dictionary definition of “demonstrate,” as well as the American College Dictionary definition of “demonstration,” to define “demonstrational” as “used to explain the use or operation of [a] good”); see also HQ H050116, dated March 26, 2009 (determining that a humanoid robot designed to “explain and demonstrate the facts and science on robots” was sufficiently “demonstrational,” given the dictionary definition of “demonstrate,” because the robot “is pointing out information about robotics generally”). This understanding of the term is supported by EN 90.23, insofar as the exemplars of items “designed for demonstrational purposes” set forth in the EN all share, as a unifying characteristic, the capacity to convey conceptual or practical knowledge. See LeMans Corp. v. United States, 660 F.3d 1311, 1320-21 (Fed. Cir. 2011) (holding that the use of EN exemplars to defi

GRI 1 requires that classification be determined first according to the terms of the headings of the tariff schedule and any relative section or chapter notes. In the event that the goods cannot be classified solely on the basis of GRI 1, and if the heading and legal notes do not otherwise require, the remaining GRIs 2 through 6 may then be applied in order. GRI 2(a) provides the following: Any reference in a heading to an article shall be taken to include a reference to that article incomplete or unfinished, provided that, as entered, the incomplete or unfinished article has the essential character of the complete or finished article. It shall also include a reference to that article complete or finished (or falling to be classified as complete or finished by virtue of this rule), entered unassembled or disassembled. The HTSUS provisions under consideration are as follows: 3926 Other articles of plastics and articles of other materials of headings 3901 to 3914 3926.40 .00 Statuettes and other ornamental articles… * * * 9023.00.00 Instruments, apparatus and models, designed for demonstrational purposes (for example, in education or exhibitions), unsuitable for other uses, and parts and accessories thereof… Note 2 to Chapter 39 states the following, in relevant part: This chapter does not cover: (u) Articles of chapter 90 (for example, optical elements, spectacle frames, drawing instruments)…. In understanding the language of the HTSUS, the Explanatory Notes (“ENs”) of the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System, which constitute the official interpretation of the HTSUS at the international level, may be utilized. The ENs, although not dispositive or legally binding, provide a commentary on the scope of each heading, and are generally indicative of the proper interpretation of the HTSUS. See T.D. 89-80, 54 Fed. Reg. 35127 (August 23, 1989). Heading 9023 describes “instruments, apparatus and models” which are “designed for demonstrational purposes” and are