Perma-Strip C.1.S. Coated Paper; Reconsideration of New York Letter 829530
Active· CBP ruling HQ 083782· Issued 1990-01-08
Ruling text
HQ 083782
January 8, 1990
CLA-2 CO:R:C:G 083782 JLJ 832782
CATEGORY: Classification
TARIFF NO.: 4811.40.0000
Mr. W. T. Corcoran
F. W. Myers & Co., Inc.
P.O. Box 188
Champlain, New York 12919
RE: Perma-Strip C.1.S. Coated Paper; Reconsideration
of New York Letter 829530
Dear Mr. Corcoran:
You requested a reconsideration of New York letter 829530
of May 31, 1989, which classified Perma-Strip C.1.S. paper
imported from Canada under the provision for paper and
paperboard, coated, impregnated or covered with wax, paraffin,
stearin, oil or glycerol, in subheading 4811.40.0000,
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated
(HTSUSA).
FACTS:
The paper at issue, Perma-Strip C.1.S. (formerly Mark IV),
is used as a base for dry strippable wall paper. It is
imported in rolls of 30 inches in diameter with a width of
approximately 21-3/8 inches or a multiple thereof, depending
upon customer requirements.
Laboratory analysis of the sample indicates that the
merchandise is white paper in sheets with a thickness of
0.127 millimeters and a basis weight of 124.68 grams per square
meter. It consists of 100 percent chemical pulp fibers. It is
coated on one side with a mixture of titanimum dioxide, calcium
and aluminum salts and some clay (23 percent ash) with a latex
binder (styrene acrylic). This side is also covered with a
stearate and with wax.
-2-
Your client, J. Ford & Co. Limited, submitted a breakdown
of components by weight and value. The percentage of wax in
the saturant and coating is 2.4 percent of the total solids,
while the percentage of calcium stearate is 0.68 percent. Your
client states that both of these products are used as
lubricants which help the calendering and as release agents for
dry strippability. He feels that the paper is not coated or
impregnated with wax or stearate because they are minor
components of both the saturant and coating.
ISSUE:
Is a paper coated with a minor amount of wax classified as
a paper coated with wax in subheading 4811.40.0000, HTSUSA?
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
There are two basic HTSUSA headings for coated paper
imported in rolls or sheets. Heading 4810, HTSUSA, covers
"Paper and paperboard, coated on one or both sides with kaolin
(China clay) or other inorganic substances, with or without a
binder, and with no other coating...." [Emphasis added.] Wax
is an organic substance. Inasmuch as Heading 4810 specifies
that the paper must be coated only with inorganic substances,
Perma-Strip C.1.S. cannot be classified in Heading 4810,
HTSUSA.
Heading 4811, HTSUSA, covers "Paper, paperboard,
...coated, impregnated, covered, surface-colored, surface-
decorated or printed...." The Explanatory Note for Heading
4811 states that it includes "Paper, paperboard,...to which
superficial coatings of materials other than kaolin or other
inorganic substances have been applied over the whole or part
of one or both surfaces." Although the wax is only 2.4 percent
of the solids on the coating, the wax does constitute part of
the coating. Inasmuch as wax is an organic substance, Heading
4811 is the correct heading for the Perma-Strip C.1.S.
-3-
HOLDINGS:
The Perma-Strip C.1.S. is coated with wax. It is
classified under the provision for paper, paperboard, coated,
impregnated, covered, surface-colored, surface-decorated or
printed, in rolls or sheets...: paper and paperboard, coated,
impregnated or covered with wax, paraffin, stearin, oil or
glycerol, in subheading 4811.40.0000, HTSUSA, dutiable at the
rate of 3.4 percent ad valorem. Merchandise originating in
Canada and classified in this subheading is eligible for a 2.7
percent duty rate under the United State-Canada Free Trade
Agreement if all applicable regulations are met.
New York letter 829530 is affirmed.
Sincerely,
John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division
6cc: Area Dir., N.Y. Seaport (NIS-234
1 cc: Port Dir., Champlain, N.Y.
T. Jones library/peh
083782JLJ
Source: rulings.cbp.gov — ruling 083782, retrieved 2026-10-12T05:18:23Z, republished verbatim. This digest is informational; only CBP issues binding rulings.