Cellphone Cases With Slot for Cards Subject to 20% Duty, CBP Says

Cellphone cases that include space to store credit cards or IDs are classifiable as containers and subject to a 20 percent duty rate, Customs and Border Patrol ruled. Unlike the standard cellphone cases that don't have storage space, inclusion of a slot for cards is a meaningful difference, CBP found. Classification of cellphone cases faced litigation, most recently with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirming an overturned CBP classification of OtterBox standard cellphone cases as “similar containers.” CBP's ruling last week responded to a request from Pelican Products.