N351895

N351895 August 29, 2025 CLA-2-18:OT:RR:NC:N5:231 CATEGORY: Classification; Origin; Trade Agreement TARIFF NO.: 1508.10.0000; 1515.90.8190; 9903.01.04; 9903.01.26 Mr. Levi Meyers GG-Technik Sales & Service Inc. d.b.a. RM Essentials 6744 Foothills Drive Vernon, British Columbia V1B 2Y3 Canada RE: The tariff classification, country of origin, and eligibility under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) for Black Seed Oil, Peanut Oil, and Pumpkin Seed Oil from Canada Dear Mr. Meyers: In your letter dated July 31, 2025, you requested a ruling on the tariff classification, country of origin, and eligibility under the USMCA of Black Seed Oil, Peanut Oil, and Pumpkin Seed Oil. Ingredient breakdowns, production descriptions, and product specifications accompanied your inquiry, in addition to marketing literature. The subject merchandise is described as three cold-pressed organic oil items, as follows. Item one is Black Seed Oil you describe as being cold pressed from Nigella sativa seeds from Egypt. You state that in Canada, those seeds are cold pressed below 40°C, are allowed to settle naturally for 24-48 hours, and are gravity filtered with no additives, solvents, or chemical modifications used. The finished oil is bottled in 100 ml and 250 ml amber glass bottles for retail sale to U.S. consumers. The oil is said to be used for dietary and culinary applications. Item two is Peanut Oil that you describe as being cold pressed from raw peanuts from China. You state that in Canada those peanuts are cold-pressed below 40°C, are allowed to settle naturally for 24–48 hours, and are gravity filtered with no additives, solvents, or chemical modifications used. The finished oil is bottled in 250 ml and 750 ml amber glass bottles for retail sale to U.S. consumers. The oil is said to be used for high-heat culinary applications. Item three is Pumpkin Seed Oil that you describe as being cold pressed from raw pumpkin seeds sourced from Germany. You state that in Canada those seeds are cold-pressed below 40°C, are allowed to settle for 24–48 hours, and are gravity filtered with no additives, solvents, or chemical modifications used. The finished oil is bottled in 100 ml or 250 ml amber glass bottles for retail sale to U.S. consumers. The oil is said to be used as a gourmet finishing oil for soups, salads, and desserts. Classification: You have requested tariff classification of the Black Seed Oil, Peanut Oil, and Pumpkin Seed Oil under subheading 1515.90.8090, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). This classification is not possible because the requested provision does not exist in the HTSUS. The applicable subheading for the Black Seed Oil will be 1515.90.8190, HTSUS, which provides for: “Other fixed vegetable or microbial fats and oils (including jojoba oil) and their fractions, whether or not refined, but not chemically modified: other: other: other.” The duty rate will be 3.2 percent ad valorem. The applicable subheading for the Peanut Oil will be 1508.10.0000, HTSUS, which provides for: “Peanut (ground-nut) oil and its fractions, whether or not refined, but not chemically modified: crude oil.” The duty rate will be 7.5 cents per kilogram. The applicable subheading for the Pumpkin Seed Oil will be 1515.90.8190, HTSUS, which provides for: “Other fixed vegetable or microbial fats and oils (including jojoba oil) and their fractions, whether or not refined, but not chemically modified: other: other: other.” The duty rate will be 3.2 percent ad valorem. Country of Origin: When determining the country of origin, the substantial transformation analysis is applicable. See, e.g., Headquarters Ruling Letter (“HQ”) H301619, dated November 6, 2018. The test for determining whether a substantial transformation will occur is whether an article emerges from a process with a new name, character, or use different from that possessed by the article prior to processing. See Texas Instruments Inc. v. United States, 681 F.2d 778 (C.C.P.A. 1982). This determination is based on the totality of the evidence. See National Hand Tool Corp. v. United States, 16 C.I.T. 308 (1992), aff’d, 989 F.2d 1201 (Fed. Cir. 1993). The “country of origin” is defined in 19 CFR 134.1(b) as “the country of manufacture, production, or growth of any article of foreign origin entering the United States. Further work or material added to an article in another country must effect a substantial transformation in order to render such other country the “country of origin” within the meaning of this part; however, for a good of a NAFTA or USMCA country, the marking rules set forth in part 102 of this chapter (hereinafter referred to as the part 102 Rules) will determine the country of origin.” Pursuant to section 102.0, interim regulations, related to the marking rules, tariff-rate quotas, and other USMCA provisions, published in the Federal Register on July 6, 2021 (86 FR 35566), the rules set forth in §§102.1 through 102.18 and 102.20 determine the country of origin for marking purposes with respect to goods imported from Canada and Mexico. Section 102.11 provides a required hierarchy for determining the country of origin of a good for marking purposes, with the exception of textile goods which are subject to the provisions of 19 C.F.R. § 102.21. Applied in sequential order, the required hierarchy establishes that: (a) The country of origin of a good is the country in which: (1) The good is wholly obtained or produced; (2) The good is produced exclusively from domestic materials; or (3) Each foreign material incorporated in that good undergoes an applicable change in tariff classification set out in section 102.20 and satisfies any other applicable requirements of that section, and all other requirements of these rules are satisfied. The subject merchandise is neither “wholly obtained or produced” nor “produced exclusively from domestic materials.” Therefore, Sections 102.11(a)(1) and 102.11(a)(2) do not apply to the facts presented in this case because the oils are neither wholly obtained nor produced exclusively from “domestic” (Canada, in this case) materials. Accordingly, we look to section 102.11(a)(3). The applicable tariff shift requirement in section 102.20 for the oils of 1508.10.0000 or 1515.90.8190, HTSUS, consists of the following: “A change to headings 1501 through 1518 from any other chapter, except from heading 3823.” Because the foreign materials contained in the oils, Nigella sativa seeds from Egypt (1207.99.0391), raw peanuts from China (1202.42.2020), and pumpkin seeds from Germany (1209.99.0391), respectively, are classified in chapters other than Chapter 15, HTSUS, the tariff shift rule is met. Therefore, in accordance with 19 C.F.R. §102.11(a)(3), the country of origin of the oil products is Canada. USMCA: The USMCA was signed by the Governments of the United States, Mexico, and Canada on November 30, 2018. The USMCA was approved by the U.S. Congress with the enactment on January 29, 2020, of the USMCA Implementation Act, Pub. L. 116-113, 134 Stat. 11, 14 (19 U.S.C. §4511(a)). General Note (“GN”) 11 of the HTSUS implements the USMCA. GN 11(b) sets forth the criteria for determining whether a good is an originating good for purposes of the USMCA. GN 11(b) states: For the purposes of this note, a good imported into the customs territory of the United States from the territory of a USMCA country, as defined in subdivision (l) of this note, is eligible for the preferential tariff treatment provided for in the applicable subheading and quantitative limitations set forth in the tariff schedule as a “good originating in the territory of a USMCA country” only if – (i) the good is a good wholly obtained or produced entirely in the territory of one or more USMCA countries; (ii) the good is a good produced entirely in the territory of one or more USMCA countries, exclusively from originating materials; (iii) the good is a good produced entirely in the territory of one or more U

is applicable. See, e.g., Headquarters Ruling Letter (“HQ”) H301619, dated November 6, 2018. The test for determining whether a substantial transformation will occur is whether an article emerges from a process with a new name, character, or use different from that possessed by the article prior to processing. See Texas Instruments Inc. v. United States, 681 F.2d 778 (C.C.P.A. 1982). This determination is based on the totality of the evidence. See National Hand Tool Corp. v. United States, 16 C.I.T. 308 (1992), aff’d, 989 F.2d 1201 (Fed. Cir. 1993). The “country of origin” is defined in 19 CFR 134.1(b) as “the country of manufacture, production, or growth of any article of foreign origin entering the United States. Further work or material added to an article in another country must effect a substantial transformation in order to render such other country the “country of origin” within the meaning of this part; however, for a good of a NAFTA or USMCA country, the marking rules set forth in part 102 of this chapter (hereinafter referred to as the part 102 Rules) will determine the country of origin.” Pursuant to section 102.0, interim regulations, related to the marking rules, tariff-rate quotas, and other USMCA provisions, published in the Federal Register on July 6, 2021 (86 FR 35566), the rules set forth in §§102.1 through 102.18 and 102.20 determine the country of origin for marking purposes with respect to goods imported from Canada and Mexico. Section 102.11 provides a required hierarchy for determining the country of origin of a good for marking purposes, with the exception of textile goods which are subject to the provisions of 19 C.F.R. § 102.21. Applied in sequential order, the required hierarchy establishes that: (a) The country of origin of a good is the country in which: (1) The good is wholly obtained or produced; (2) The good is produced exclusively from domestic materials; or (3) Each foreign material incorporated in that good undergoes an applicable