19 CFR § 10.243 - Articles eligible for preferential treatment.

§ 10.243 Articles eligible for preferential treatment.

(a) General. Subject to paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, preferential treatment applies to the following apparel and other textile articles that are imported directly into the customs territory of the United States from an ATPDEA beneficiary country:

(1) Apparel articles sewn or otherwise assembled in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries, or in the United States, or in both, exclusively from any one of the following:

(i) Fabrics or fabric components wholly formed, or components knit-to-shape, in the United States, from yarns wholly formed in the United States or in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries (including fabrics not formed from yarns, if those fabrics are classifiable under heading 5602 or 5603 of the HTSUS and are formed in the United States), provided that, if the apparel article is assembled from knitted or crocheted or woven wholly formed fabrics or from knitted or crocheted or woven wholly formed fabric components produced from fabric, all dyeing, printing, and finishing of that knitted or crocheted or woven fabric or component was carried out in the United States;

(ii) Fabrics or fabric components formed, or components knit-to-shape, in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries from yarns wholly formed in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries, if those fabrics (including fabrics not formed from yarns, if those fabrics are classifiable under heading 5602 or 5603 of the HTSUS and are formed in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries) or components are in chief value of llama, alpaca, and/or vicuña;

(iii) Fabrics or yarns, provided that apparel articles (except articles classifiable under subheading 6212.10 of the HTSUS) of those fabrics or yarns would be considered an originating good under General Note 12(t), HTSUS, if the apparel articles had been imported directly from Canada or Mexico; or

(iv) Fabrics or yarns that the President or his designee has designated in the Federal Register as fabrics or yarns that cannot be supplied by the domestic industry in commercial quantities in a timely manner;

(2) Apparel articles sewn or otherwise assembled in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries, or in the United States, or in both, exclusively from a combination of fabrics, fabric components, knit-to-shape components or yarns described in two or more of paragraphs (a)(1)(i) through (a)(1)(iv) of this section;

(3) A handloomed, handmade, or folklore apparel or other textile article of an ATPDEA beneficiary country that the President or his designee and representatives of the ATPDEA beneficiary country mutually agree is a handloomed, handmade, or folklore article and that is certified as a handloomed, handmade, or folklore article by the competent authority of the ATPDEA beneficiary country;

(4) Brassieres classifiable under subheading 6212.10 of the HTSUS, if both cut and sewn or otherwise assembled in the United States, or in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries, or in both, other than articles entered as articles described in paragraphs (a)(1) through (a)(3) and (a)(7) of this section, and provided that any applicable additional requirements set forth in § 10.248 are met;

(5) Textile luggage assembled in an ATPDEA beneficiary country from fabric wholly formed and cut in the United States, from yarns wholly formed in the United States, that is entered under subheading 9802.00.80 of the HTSUS;

(6) Textile luggage assembled in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries from fabric cut in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries from fabric wholly formed in the United States from yarns wholly formed in the United States; and

(7) Apparel articles sewn or otherwise assembled in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries from fabrics or from fabric components formed, or from components knit-to-shape, in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries from yarns wholly formed in the United States or in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries (including fabrics not formed from yarns, if those fabrics are classifiable under heading 5602 or 5603 of the HTSUS and are formed in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries), including apparel articles sewn or otherwise assembled in part but not exclusively from any of the fabrics, fabric components formed, or components knit-to-shape described in paragraph (a)(1) of this section.

(b) Dyeing, printing, finishing and other operations—(1) Dyeing, printing and finishing operations. Dyeing, printing, and finishing operations may be performed on any yarn, fabric, or knit-to-shape or other component used in the production of any article described under paragraph (a) of this section without affecting the eligibility of the article for preferential treatment, provided that the operation is performed in the United States or in an ATPDEA beneficiary country and not in any other country and subject to the following additional conditions:

(i) In the case of an article described in paragraph (a)(1), (a)(2), or (a)(7) of this section that contains a knitted or crocheted or woven fabric, or a knitted or crocheted or woven fabric component produced from fabric, that was wholly formed in the United States from yarns wholly formed in the United States or in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries, as described in paragraph (a)(1)(i) of this section, any dyeing, printing, or finishing of that knitted or crocheted or woven fabric or component must have been carried out in the United States; and

(ii) In the case of assembled luggage described in paragraph (a)(5) of this section, an operation may be performed in an ATPDEA beneficiary country only if that operation is incidental to the assembly process within the meaning of § 10.16.

(2) Other operations. An article described under paragraph (a) of this section that is otherwise eligible for preferential treatment will not be disqualified from receiving that treatment by virtue of having undergone one or more operations such as embroidering, stone-washing, enzyme-washing, acid washing, perma-pressing, oven-baking, bleaching, garment-dyeing or screen printing, provided that the operation is performed in the United States or in an ATPDEA beneficiary country and not in any other country. However, in the case of assembled luggage described in paragraph (a)(5) of this section, an operation may be performed in an ATPDEA beneficiary country without affecting the eligibility of the article for preferential treatment only if it is incidental to the assembly process within the meaning of § 10.16.

(c) Special rules for certain component materials—(1) Foreign findings, trimmings, interlinings, and yarns—(i) General. An article otherwise described under paragraph (a) of this section will not be ineligible for the preferential treatment referred to in § 10.241 because the article contains:

(A) Findings and trimmings of foreign origin, if the value of those findings and trimmings does not exceed 25 percent of the cost of the components of the assembled article. For purposes of this section “findings and trimmings” include, but are not limited to, sewing thread, hooks and eyes, snaps, buttons, “bow buds,” decorative lace trim, elastic strips, zippers (including zipper tapes), and labels;

(B) Interlinings of foreign origin, if the value of those interlinings does not exceed 25 percent of the cost of the components of the assembled article. For purposes of this section “interlinings” include only a chest type plate, a “hymo” piece, or “sleeve header,” of woven or weft-inserted warp knit construction and of coarse animal hair or man-made filaments;

(C) Any combination of findings and trimmings of foreign origin and interlinings of foreign origin, if the total value of those findings and trimmings and interlinings does not exceed 25 percent of the cost of the components of the assembled article; or

(D) Yarns not wholly formed in the United States or in one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries if the total weight of all those yarns is not more than 7 percent of the total weight of the article.

(ii) “Cost” and “value” defined. The “cost” of components and the “value” of findings and trimmings or interlinings referred to in paragraph (c)(1)(i) of this section means:

(A) The ex-factory price of the components, findings and trimmings, or interlinings as set out in the invoice or other commercial documents, or, if the price is other than ex-factory, the price as set out in the invoice or other commercial documents adjusted to arrive at an ex-factory price; or

(B) If the price cannot be determined under paragraph (c)(1)(ii)(A) of this section or if CBP finds that price to be unreasonable, all reasonable expenses incurred in the growth, production, manufacture, or other processing of the components, findings and trimmings, or interlinings, including the cost or value of materials and general expenses, plus a reasonable amount for profit.

(iii) Treatment of yarns as findings or trimmings. If any yarns not wholly formed in the United States or one or more ATPDEA beneficiary countries are used in an article as a finding or trimming described in paragraph (c)(1)(i)(A) of this section, the yarns will be considered to be a finding or trimming for purposes of paragraph (c)(1)(i) of this section.

(2) Special rule for nylon filament yarn. An article otherwise described under paragraph (a)(1)(i) through (iii), (a)(2), or (a)(7) of this section will not be ineligible for the preferential treatment referred to in § 10.241 because the article contains nylon filament yarn (other than elastomeric yarn) that is classifiable in subheading 5402.10.30, 5402.10.60, 5402.31.30, 5402.31.60, 5402.32.30, 5402.32.60, 5402.41.10, 5402.41.90, 5402.51.00, or 5402.61.00 of the HTSUS and that is entered free of duty from Canada, Mexico, or Israel.

(d) Imported directly defined. For purposes of paragraph (a) of this section, the words “imported directly” mean:

(1) Direct shipment from any ATPDEA beneficiary country to the United States without passing through the territory of any country that is not an ATPDEA beneficiary country;

(2) If the shipment is from any ATPDEA beneficiary country to the United States through the territory of any country that is not an ATPDEA beneficiary country, the articles in the shipment do not enter into the commerce of any country that is not an ATPDEA beneficiary country while en route to the United States and the invoices, bills of lading, and other shipping documents show the United States as the final destination; or

(3) If the shipment is from any ATPDEA beneficiary country to the United States through the territory of any country that is not an ATPDEA beneficiary country, and the invoices and other documents do not show the United States as the final destination, the articles in the shipment upon arrival in the United States are imported directly only if they:

(i) Remained under the control of the customs authority of the intermediate country;

(ii) Did not enter into the commerce of the intermediate country except for the purpose of sale other than at retail, and the Center director is satisfied that the importation results from the original commercial transaction between the importer and the producer or the producer's sales agent; and

(iii) Were not subjected to operations other than loading or unloading, and other activities necessary to preserve the articles in good condition.