H305462

 HQ H305462 January 4, 2023 OT:RR:CTF:CPMM H305462 RRB CATEGORY: Classification TARIFF NO.: Various Amy J. Johannesen Johannesen Associates, PC Attorneys at Law 69 Charlton Street New York, NY 10014 RE: Revocation of NY N297394; tariff classification of fashion show items from France Dear Ms. Johannesen: This letter is in reference to New York Ruling Letter (“NY”) N297394, dated June 11, 2018, regarding the classification of Chanel, Inc.’s (“Chanel”) runway haute couture wearing apparel, headwear, accessories, jewelry and footwear under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (“HTSUS”). In NY N279394, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) classified the runway haute couture items under subheading 9705.00.0070, HTSUSA (“Annotated”) (2018), as “Collections and collectors’ pieces of zoological, botanical, mineralogical, anatomical, historical, archeological, paleontological, ethnographic or numismatic interest … Archaeological, historical, or ethnographic pieces.” After reviewing the ruling in its entirety, we find it to be in error. For the reasons set forth below, we are revoking NY N297394. Pursuant to section 625(c)(1), Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. §1625(c)(1)), as amended by section 623 of Title VI, notice proposing to revoke NY N297394 was published on September 14, 2022, in Volume 56, Number 36 of the Customs Bulletin. No comments were received in response to the notice. FACTS: In NY N297394, the runway haute couture items were described as follows: The merchandise concerned as stated by Counsel is Chanel’s, “one of a kind haute couture runway items,” which include fashion apparel, accessories, jewelry and footwear. No specific year or semi-annual timeframe was mentioned for the runway showcases, nor were styles of identification mentioned for the clothing and accessory items paired together to create specific looks. These showcases occur twice yearly, one in January and one in July. Taken from the position paper filed by Counsel on behalf of Chanel, the haute couture runway apparel items are crafted by hand, some pieces require more than 600 hours to create, and use rare and in many cases one-of-a-kind fabrics and decorative elements. Chanel is a member of the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture (“Chambre Syndicale”) in France. The Chambre Syndicale requires its members to adhere to specific criteria as part of its business structure, which includes designing made-to-order clothes for private clients, with more than one fitting, having an atelier (workshop) in Paris that employs at least fifteen staff members full-time; having twenty full-time technical workers in one of their workshops; and presenting a collection of at least fifty original designs—both day and evening garments—to the public every fashion season, in January and July of each year. Nowhere in NY N297394, or in its original submission, did Chanel identify item numbers, product numbers, item descriptions, costs, or material build sheets for the merchandise at issue. ISSUE: Whether the Chanel runway haute couture wearing apparel, headwear, accessories, jewelry, and footwear are properly classified in heading 9705 as a collectors' piece of historical interest or in the HTSUS heading that corresponds to the constituent material of each item. LAW AND ANALYSIS: Classification under the HTSUS is made in accordance with the General Rules of Interpretation (GRIs). GRI 1 provides that the classification of goods shall be determined 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 headings and legal notes do not otherwise require, the remaining GRIs 2 through 6 may then be applied in order. GRI 6 provides that for legal purposes, the classification of goods in the subheadings of a heading shall be determined according to the terms of those subheadings and any related Subheading Notes and, mutatis mutandis, to the above Rules, on the understanding that only subheadings at the same level are comparable. For the purposes of this Rule the relative Section and Chapter Notes also apply, unless the context otherwise requires. The HTSUS headings under consideration are the following: 4202 Trunks, suitcases, vanity cases, attaché cases, briefcases, school satchels, spectacle cases, binocular cases, camera cases, musical instrument cases, gun cases, holsters and similar containers; traveling bags, insulated food or beverage bags, toiletry bags, knapsacks and backpacks, handbags, shopping bags, wallets, purses, map cases, cigarette cases, tobacco pouches, tool bags, sports bags, bottle cases, jewelry boxes, powder cases, cutlery cases and similar containers, of leather or of composition leather, of sheeting of plastics, of textile materials, of vulcanized fiber or of paperboard, or wholly or mainly covered with such materials or with paper 4203 Articles of apparel and clothing accessories, of leather or of composition leather 4303 Articles of apparel, clothing accessories and other articles of furskin 4304 Artificial fur and articles thereof Various headings of chapter 61: Articles of apparel and clothing accessories, knitted or crocheted Various headings of chapter 62: Articles of apparel and clothing accessories, not knitted or crocheted 6402 Other footwear with outer soles and uppers of rubber or plastics 6403 Footwear with outer soles of rubber, plastics, leather or composition leather and uppers of leather 6404 Footwear with outer soles of rubber, plastics, leather or composition leather and uppers of textile materials 6405 Other footwear 6504 Hats and other headgear, plaited or made by assembling strips of any material, whether or not lined or trimmed 6505 Hats and other headgear, knitted or crocheted, or made up from lace, felt or other textile fabric, in the piece (but not in strips), whether or not lined or trimmed; hair-nets of any material, whether or not lined or trimmed 6506 Other headgear, whether or not lined or trimmed 7113 Articles of jewelry and parts thereof, of precious metal or of metal clad with precious metal 7116 Articles of natural or cultured pearls, precious or semiprecious stones (natural, synthetic or reconstructed) 9705 Collections and collectors' pieces of zoological, botanical, mineralogical, anatomical, historical, archeological, paleontological, ethnographic or numismatic interest Note 1(c) to chapter 97, HTSUS, provides that the chapter does not cover “Pearls, natural or cultured, or precious or semiprecious stones (7101 to 7103).” Note 4(a) to chapter 97, HTSUS, provides that “…articles of this chapter are to be classified in this chapter and not in any other chapter of the tariff schedule.” Consequently, classification in heading 9705, HTSUS, must be considered before resorting to any other heading in the HTSUS. See Headquarters Ruling Letter ("HQ") H021886, dated August 6, 2008. The Explanatory Notes (“ENs”) to the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System represent the official interpretation of the tariff at the international level. While neither legally binding nor dispositive, the ENs provide a commentary on the scope of each heading of the HTSUS and are generally indicative of the proper interpretation of these headings at the international level. See T.D. 89-80, 54 Fed. Reg. 35127, 35128 (Aug. 23, 1989). EN 97.05 states, in pertinent part, the following: These articles are very often of little intrinsic value but derive their interest from their rarity, their grouping or their presentation…. *** (B) Collections and collectors’ pieces of historical, ethnographic, palaeontological or archaeological interest, for example : Articles being the material remains of human activity suitable for the study of the activities of earlier generations, such as mummies, sarcophagi, weapons, objects of worship, articles of apparel, articles which have belonged to famous persons. Articles having a bear

Classification under the HTSUS is made in accordance with the General Rules of Interpretation (GRIs). GRI 1 provides that the classification of goods shall be determined 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 headings and legal notes do not otherwise require, the remaining GRIs 2 through 6 may then be applied in order. GRI 6 provides that for legal purposes, the classification of goods in the subheadings of a heading shall be determined according to the terms of those subheadings and any related Subheading Notes and, mutatis mutandis, to the above Rules, on the understanding that only subheadings at the same level are comparable. For the purposes of this Rule the relative Section and Chapter Notes also apply, unless the context otherwise requires. The HTSUS headings under consideration are the following:4202 Trunks, suitcases, vanity cases, attaché cases, briefcases, school satchels, spectacle cases, binocular cases, camera cases, musical instrument cases, gun cases, holsters and similar containers; traveling bags, insulated food or beverage bags, toiletry bags, knapsacks and backpacks, handbags, shopping bags, wallets, purses, map cases, cigarette cases, tobacco pouches, tool bags, sports bags, bottle cases, jewelry boxes, powder cases, cutlery cases and similar containers, of leather or of composition leather, of sheeting of plastics, of textile materials, of vulcanized fiber or of paperboard, or wholly or mainly covered with such materials or with paper4203 Articles of apparel and clothing accessories, of leather or of composition leather4303 Articles of apparel, clothing accessories and other articles of furskin4304 Artificial fur and articles thereofVarious headings of chapter 61: Articles of apparel and clothing accessories, knitted or crochetedVarious headings of chapter 62: Articles of apparel and clothin