H307526

HQ H307526 August 7, 2020 OT:RR:CTF:VS H307526 AP CATEGORY: Classification Center Director Automotive and Aerospace CEE 477 Michigan Ave., Room 281 Detroit, MI 48226 Attn.: Christopher Hughes, CBP Import Specialist RE: Subheading 9817.00.96, HTSUS; Lift chair components Dear Center Director: The following is our decision regarding the secondary classification in the Application for Further Review (“AFR”) of Protest Number 4601-19-106343, timely filed on October 22, 2019, on behalf of Golden Brothers, Inc. (“protestant”). The AFR was forwarded to the Valuation and Special Programs Branch for a decision on the applicability of subheading 9817.00.96, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (“HTSUS”), to the subject lift chair components. A teleconference with counsel was held on May 20, 2020, to discuss the applicability of subheading 9817.00.96, HTSUS. FACTS: Golden Brothers, Inc. manufactures lift and recline chairs. Protestant states that the company represents approximately half of the U.S. lift chair market. Protestant describes the merchandise at issue as components of its lift chairs, also known as “lift recliners” and “power lift recliners.” The chair components are: scissor mechanisms (RM8300R/L), rear mounting brackets (RMB756), spacer bar assembly (RM756SM), back rest brackets (RM501JPSB), ottoman brackets (41511002PPMB-OTTOMEDF), back bar (RM512MRMB), recline bars (RB100L23), dual motor lift frame with gusset (LM6111), power head rest adjustable link (RM505HRM-L/R), powered head rest tube (RM505HRM-S), and plastic tube (MID-OTTOMAN). The scissor mechanisms are a scissor linkage used to raise and lower the footrest and recline the chair; one on left, one on right. The rear mounting brackets are a mechanism bar for movement of the back of the chair. The spacer bar assembly and the back rest brackets are used to attach the scissor mechanisms to the chair’s seat and back assembly. The ottoman brackets are a metal safety bar used to avoid entrapment under the footrest. The back bar is a rear mounting bracket/mechanism bar for movement of the chair’s back and footrest. The recline bars attach to the chair’s motor to lift the frame for reclining. The dual motor lift frame with gusset is the chair’s lift frame. The power head rest adjustable link is used for the power headrest adjustments. The powered head rest tubes connect the chair’s left and right side headrest linkage. The plastic tubes serve as a plastic safety bar to avoid entrapment under the chair’s footrest. The components are imported separately, not as a complete lift chair, and are assembled with other components in the United States to form the lift chair. Below are images of the chair and its parts supplied by protestant: Protestant describes the lift chair as “designed specifically for individuals suffering from a physical impairment that makes it difficult to get into and out of a chair.” The lift chairs offer lifting options that assist an adult to move from a seated position to a standing position. The chairs include non-stick leg levers for mount/dismount stability and rear standing legs for support when the chair is used as a bed. Protestant states that the gauge springs, the calibrated motors, and the high-density foam have 375-pound weight lift and recline capacities. The chairs allow individuals to lay flat like a bed or be positioned for eating, sleeping, and recovery. The footrest raises to help the body circulate fluid from the lower body back to the upper body. The chairs are designed to prevent pressure sores. Protestant states that the chairs are primarily sold to and by Durable Medical Suppliers (“DMS”) and other specialty medical stores, and include materials that are not interchangeable with chairs or other devices not designed for use by the physically handicapped. The chairs are covered by several U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) patents, of which the most recent one is Patent No. 10,327,553 B2, dated June 25, 2019. The chairs’ lift and recline mechanisms are covered by Medicare. The chairs are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) as Class II medical devices but no prescription is needed to purchase them. The entry subject to this Protest was filed on January 7, 2019, and was liquidated on August 30, 2019. Protestant entered the items under subheading 9402.10.00, HTSUS. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) liquidated the chair components covered by the entry under subheadings 9401.90.3580, HTSUSA/9903.88.03, HTSUS and 9401.90.5081, HTSUSA/9903.88.03, HTSUS. The components were subject to additional Section 301 duties for products from China. ISSUE: Whether the instant lift chair components are eligible for duty-free treatment under subheading 9817.00.96, HTSUS. LAW AND ANALYSIS: Initially, we note that the matter protested is protestable under 19 U.S.C. § 1514(a)(1) as a decision on the value of merchandise. The protest was timely filed, within 180 days of liquidation for the entry made on January 7, 2019. See Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act of 2004, Pub. L. 108-429, § 2103(2)(B)(ii)-(iii) (codified as amended at 19 U.S.C. § 1514(c)(3) (2006)). Further Review of this Protest is properly accorded to protestant pursuant to 19 C.F.R. § 174.24(b) because the issues protested involve questions of law or fact, which have not been ruled upon. We next turn to the special classification. Subheading 9817.00.96, HTSUS, came into effect in the United States through a series of international agreements and acts of Congress. Its basis is in the Agreement on the Importation of Educational, Scientific and Cultural Materials, opened for signature Nov. 22, 1950, 17 U.S.T. 1835, 131 U.N.T.S. 25, or Florence Agreement, drafted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (“UNESCO”) in July 1950. In 1976, UNESCO adopted the Nairobi Protocol to the Florence Agreement, which expanded the scope of products to include materials specially designed for handicapped persons. See Protocol to the Agreement on the Importation of Educational, Scientific, or Cultural Materials, opened for signature 1 Mar. 1977, 1259 U.N.T.S. 3. Congress ratified the Nairobi Protocol and enacted it into U.S. law in 1983. Pub. L. 97-446, § 161, 96 Stat. 2329, 2346 (1983). Section 1121 of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 (Pub. L. No. 100-418, 102 Stat. 1107) and Presidential Proclamation 5978 implemented the Nairobi Protocol by inserting permanent provisions such as subheading 9817.00.96 into the HTSUS. Subheading 9817.00.96, HTSUS, provides for: “Articles specially designed or adapted for the use or benefit of the blind or other physically or mentally handicapped persons; parts and accessories (except parts and accessories of braces and artificial limb prosthetics) that are specially designed or adapted for use in the foregoing articles . . . Other.” U.S. Note 4(a), Subchapter XVII, Chapter 98, HTSUS, states that the term “blind or other physically or mentally handicapped persons” includes “any person suffering from a permanent or chronic physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more major life activities, such as caring for one’s self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, or working.” U.S. Note 4(b), Subchapter XVII, Chapter 98, HTSUS states that subheading 9817.00.96 excludes “(i) articles for acute or transient disability; (ii) spectacles, dentures, and cosmetic articles for individuals not substantially disabled; (iii) therapeutic and diagnostic articles; or, (iv) medicine or drugs.” Thus, classification within subheading 9817.00.96, HTSUS, depends on whether a product is “specially designed or adapted for the use or benefit of the blind or other physically or mentally handicapped persons,” and whether it falls within any of the enumerated exclusions under U.S. Note 4(b), Subchapter XVII, Chapter 98, HTSUS. At issue here is whether the comp

Initially, we note that the matter protested is protestable under 19 U.S.C. § 1514(a)(1) as a decision on the value of merchandise. The protest was timely filed, within 180 days of liquidation for the entry made on January 7, 2019. See Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act of 2004, Pub. L. 108-429, § 2103(2)(B)(ii)-(iii) (codified as amended at 19 U.S.C. § 1514(c)(3) (2006)). Further Review of this Protest is properly accorded to protestant pursuant to 19 C.F.R. § 174.24(b) because the issues protested involve questions of law or fact, which have not been ruled upon.We next turn to the special classification. Subheading 9817.00.96, HTSUS, came into effect in the United States through a series of international agreements and acts of Congress. Its basis is in the Agreement on the Importation of Educational, Scientific and Cultural Materials, opened for signature Nov. 22, 1950, 17 U.S.T. 1835, 131 U.N.T.S. 25, or Florence Agreement, drafted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (“UNESCO”) in July 1950. In 1976, UNESCO adopted the Nairobi Protocol to the Florence Agreement, which expanded the scope of products to include materials specially designed for handicapped persons. See Protocol to the Agreement on the Importation of Educational, Scientific, or Cultural Materials, opened for signature 1 Mar. 1977, 1259 U.N.T.S. 3. Congress ratified the Nairobi Protocol and enacted it into U.S. law in 1983. Pub. L. 97-446, § 161, 96 Stat. 2329, 2346 (1983). Section 1121 of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 (Pub. L. No. 100-418, 102 Stat. 1107) and Presidential Proclamation 5978 implemented the Nairobi Protocol by inserting permanent provisions such as subheading 9817.00.96 into the HTSUS.Subheading 9817.00.96, HTSUS, provides for: “Articles specially designed or adapted for the use or benefit of the blind or other physically or mentally handicapped persons; parts and accessories (except parts and accessories of braces