§10.16. Assembly abroad.
19 C.F.R. § 10.16
Assembly operations. The assembly operations performed abroad may consist of any method used to join or fit together solid components, such as welding, soldering, riveting, force fitting, gluing, laminating, sewing, or the use of fasteners, and may be preceded, accompanied, or followed by operations incidental to the assembly as illustrated in paragraph (b) of this section. The mixing or combining of liquids, gases, chemicals, food ingredients, and amorphous solids with each other or with solid components is not regarded as an assembly.
Operations incidental to the assembly process. Operations incidental to the assembly process whether performed before, during, or after assembly, do not constitute further fabrication, and will not preclude the application of the exemption. The following are examples of operations which are incidental to the assembly process:
Cleaning;
Removal of rust, grease, paint, or other preservative coating;
Application of paint or preservative coating, including preservative metallic coating, lubricants, or protective encapsulation;
Trimming, filing, or cutting off of small amounts of excess materials;
Adjustments in the shape or form of a component to the extent required by the assembly being performed abroad;
Cutting to length of wire, thread, tape, foil, and similar products exported in continuous length; separation by cutting of finished components, such as prestamped integrated circuit lead frames exported in multiple unit strips; and
Final calibration, testing, marking, sorting, pressing, and folding of assembled articles.
Operations not incidental to the assembly process. Any significant process, operation, or treatment other than assembly whose primary purpose is the fabrication, completion, physical or chemical improvement of a component, or which is not related to the assembly process, whether or not it effects a substantial transformation of the article, will not be regarded as incidental to the assembly and will preclude the application of the exemption to such article. The following are examples of operations not considered incidental to the assembly as provided under subheading 9802.00.80, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (19 U.S.C. 1202):
Melting of exported ingots and pouring of the metal into molds to produce cast metal parts;
Cutting of garment parts according to pattern from exported material;
Chemical treatment of components or assembled articles to impart new characteristics, such as showerproofing, permapressing, sanforizing, dying or bleaching of textiles;
Machining, polishing, burnishing, peening, plating (other than plating incidental to the assembly), embossing, pressing, stamping, extruding, drawing, annealing, tempering, case hardening, and any other operation, treatment or process which imparts significant new characteristics or qualities to the article affected.
Joining of American-made and foreign-made components. An assembly operation may involve the use of American-made components and foreign-made components. The various requirements for establishing entitlement to the exemption apply only to the American-made components of the assembly.
Subassembly. An assembly operation may involve the joining or fitting of American-made components into a part or subassembly of an article, followed by the installation of the part or subassembly into the complete article.
Packing. The packing abroad of merchandise into containers does not in itself qualify either the containers or their contents for the exemption. However, assembled articles which otherwise qualify for the exemption and which are packaged abroad following their assembly will not be disqualified from the exemption by reason of their having been so packaged, whether for retail sale or for bulk shipment. The tariff status of the packing materials or containers will be determined in accordance with General Rule of Interpretation 5, HTSUS (19 U.S.C. 1202).
Notes, amendments, and revision history
Amendments
[T.D. 75-230, 40 FR 43023, Sept. 18, 1975, as amended by T.D. 89-1, 53 FR 51248, Dec. 21, 1988; CBP Dec. 08-21, 73 FR 33300, June 12, 2008]
Authority
Authority: 19 U.S.C. 66, 1202 (General Note 3(i), Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS)), 1321, 1481, 1484, 1498, 1508, 1623, 1624, 4513. Section 10.17 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1401a, 1402; Sections 10.25 and 10.26 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 3592; Sections 10.41, 10.41a, 10.107 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1322; Section 10.41b also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1202 (Chapter 98, Subchapter III, U.S. Note 3, HTSUS); Section 10.53 also issued under 16 U.S.C. 1521, et seq.; Section 10.59 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1309, 1317; Sections 10.61, 10.62, 10.63, 10.64, 10.64a also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1309; Sections 10.62a, 10.65 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1309, 1317, 1555, 1556, 1557, 1646a; § 10.62b also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1557; Sections 10.70, 10.71 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1486; Sections 10.80, 10.81, 10.82, 10.83 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1313 (e) and (i); Section 10.91 also issued under Pub. L. 106-476 (114 Stat. 2101), sections 1434, 1435; Section 10.121 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 2501. Sections 10.171 through 10.178a also issued under 19 U.S.C. 2461 et seq.; Section 10.183 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1202 (General Note 6, HTSUS); Sections 10.191 through 10.199 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.; Sections 10.201 through 10.207 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 3203; Sections 10.211 through 10.217 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 3721; Sections 10.221 through 10.228 and §§ 10.231 through 10.237 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 2701 et seq. Sections 10.241 through 10.248 and §§ 10.251 through 10.257 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 3203. Sections 10.401 through 10.490 also issued under Pub. L. 108-77, 117 Stat. 909 (19 U.S.C. 3805 note). Sections 10.501 through 10.570 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1202 (General Note 25, HTSUS) and Pub. L. 108-78, 117 Stat. 948 (19 U.S.C. 3805 note). Sections 10.581 through 10.625 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1202 (General Note 29, HTSUS), 19 U.S.C. 1520(d), and Pub. L. 109-53, 119 Stat. 462 (19 U.S.C. 4001 note). Section 10.699 also issued under Pub. L. 109-53, 119 Stat. 462. Sections 10.701 through 10.712 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1202 (General Note 18, HTSUS) and Pub. L. 107-43, 115 Stat. 243 (19 U.S.C. 2112 note). Sections 10.721 through 10.748 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1202 (General Note 28, HTSUS) and Pub. L. 108-286, 118 Stat. 919 (19 U.S.C. 3805 note). Sections 10.761 through 10.789 also issued under Pub. L. 108-302, 118 Stat. 1103 (19 U.S.C. 3805 note). Sections 10.801 through 10.829 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1202 (General Note 30, HTSUS) and Pub. L. 109-169, 119 Stat. 3581 (19 U.S.C. 3805 note). Sections 10.841 through 10.850 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 2703A. Sections 10.861 through 10.890 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1202 (General Note 31, HTSUS) and Pub. L. 109-283, 120 Stat. 1191 (19 U.S.C. 3805 note). Sections 10.901 through 10.934 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1202 (General Note 32, HTSUS), 19 U.S.C. 1520(d), and Pub. L. 110-138, 121 Stat. 1455 (19 U.S.C. 3805 note). Sections 10.1001 through 10.1034 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1202 (General Note 33, HTSUS), 19 U.S.C. 1520(d), and Pub. L. 112-41, 125 Stat. 428 (19 U.S.C. 3805 note). Sections 10.2001 through 10.2034 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1202 (General Note 35, HTSUS), 19 U.S.C. 1520(d), and Pub. L. 112-43, 125 Stat. 497 (19 U.S.C. 3805 note). Sections 10.3001 through 10.3034 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1202 (General Note 34, HTSUS), 19 U.S.C. 1520(d), and Pub. L. 112-42, 125 Stat. 462 (19 U.S.C. 3805 note).
Source
Source: 28 FR 14663, Dec. 31, 1963, unless otherwise noted.
Amendments
[T.D. 75-230, 40 FR 43023, Sept. 18, 1975, as amended by T.D. 89-1, 53 FR 51248, Dec. 21, 1988; CBP Dec. 08-21, 73 FR 33300, June 12, 2008]