Imported Carpet Tiles Not Considered 'Made Up,' Says CBP

Imported carpet tiles are not considered to be "made up," CBP said in an Aug. 3 ruling. CBP made the ruling in response to an application for further review submitted by the importer Brintons USA, which said that the carpet tiles should be classified "made up," in part because the tiles are ready for use immediately after import. The ruling number is HQ H133215 (here).

Brintons imported a carpet tile shipment in 2008 and classified them in the duty-free subheading 5702.41.20, which covers certain "made up" carpets. CBP disagreed with the classification and later liquidated the merchandise under the subheading 5702.31.20, which covers "not made up" carpets and includes a 4 percent duty rate. The company subsequently filed for further review of the protest and made "numerous arguments in support of its contention that the subject carpet tiles are properly classified," said CBP.

CBP previously ruled that the term "made up" means "produced in the finished state," which is true of carpets that "come off the loom in their final forms," but not carpeting," which requires additional work, the agency said. Similar to carpeting in past rulings, "the tiles originate from master rolls and are systematically cut into smaller pieces prior to their end uses as floor coverings" and only differ in the "timing and extent" of the additional cutting, the agency said. "Hence, the carpet tiles are not ready for use at time of production in the manner of area rugs classified in subheading 5702.41.20," the agency said.

Brintons also asked CBP to expand the scope of HTS Note 7(b), which defines "made up" as "produced in the finished state, ready for use (or merely needing separation by cutting dividing threads)." The agency should "adopt a 'modern' interpretation of 'dividing threads' as including woven demarcations in the master carpet designed to guide cutting," the agency said. While Brintons pointed to a 2003 addition of 7(c) to the note as evidence of a broad expansion, the agency said that amendment is unrelated to the carpet tiles at issue and declined the request. The company also failed "to cite any CBP ruling or court case that supports its contention that woven lines are coextensive with 'dividing threads," the agency said.

The company also said that the carpet tiles were already cut and in their final manufactured form and ready for use at the time of import. But because the term "made up" is defined as “produced in the finished state,” it's "immaterial whether the cutting and other preparation of the tiles has occurred prior to importation," CBP said. As result, CBP found its classification of the tiles was correct.