§10.305. Value content requirement.
19 C.F.R. § 10.305
Direct cost of processing or assembling—
Definition. For purposes of applying a specific rule of origin under the Agreement which requires a value content determination, the terms “direct cost of processing” and “direct cost of assembling” mean the costs directly incurred in, or that can be reasonably allocated to, the production of goods, including:
The cost of all labor, including benefits and on-the-job training, labor provided in connection with supervision, quality control, shipping, receiving, storage, packaging, management at the location of the process or assembly, and other like labor, whether provided by employees or independent contractors;
The cost of inspecting and testing the goods;
The cost of energy, fuel, dies, molds, tooling, and the depreciation and maintenance of machinery and equipment, without regard to whether they originate within the territory of the United States or Canada;
Development, design, and engineering costs;
Rent, mortgage interest, depreciation on buildings, property insurance premiums, maintenance, taxes and the cost of utilities for real property used in the production of the goods; and
Royalty, licensing, or other like payments for the right to the goods.
Exclusions from direct costs of processing or assembling. Excluded from the direct costs of processing or assembling are:
Costs relating to the general expense of doing business, such as the cost of providing executive, financial, sales, advertising, marketing, accounting and legal services, and insurance;
Brokerage charges relating to the importation and exportation of goods;
Costs for telephone, mail, and other means of communication;
Packing costs for exporting the goods;
Royalty payments related to a licensing agreement to distribute or sell the goods;
Rent, mortgage interest, depreciation on buildings, property insurance premiums, maintenance, taxes, and the cost of utilities for real property used by personnel charged with administrative functions; and
Profit on the goods.
Interpretation—
Indirect materials. Under the definition of “materials” set forth in § 10.303(b), certain types of materials are treated as direct costs of processing or assembling under paragraph (a) of this section. This applies principally to materials used or consumed indirectly in the production of exported goods, where no portion of those materials is physically incorporated in the exported goods. In addition to the items specified in paragraph (a)(1)(iii) of this section, such materials include items such as gloves and safety glasses worn by production workers, tape used in painting processes, and tools, materials and spare parts used in the repair and maintenance of machinery and equipment used in the production of the exported goods. Such materials are to be distinguished from waste and spoilage specified in paragraph (b)(1)(ii)(C) of this section, which relate to materials that are physically incorporated in the exported goods.
Directly incurred. In order for costs incurred by a production facility to be treated as direct costs of processing or assembling, those costs must be directly incurred in the production of the exported goods and not merely associated with the production facility as peripheral costs necessary to operate the facility. In addition to the exclusions set forth in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, such peripheral costs include labor costs for nurses tending to employees, for accounting personnel involved in physical inventory taking, for personnel responsible for purchasing or requisitioning materials to be used or consumed in the production process, and for second level supervisors and above who are not directly involved in the production process.
Labor costs. Under paragraph (a)(1)(i) of this section, labor costs includable as direct costs of processing or assembling are limited to labor provided by the producer's employees or by independent contractors. Thus, for example, where processing operations are performed on components in the United States and those components are sold to a manufacturer in Canada where they are incorporated in goods exported to the United States, the cost of those processing operations in the United States cannot be separately counted as a direct cost of processing attributable to the finished goods exported to the United States.
Interest expense. Bona fide— interest payments on debt of any form, secured or unsecured, undertaken on arm's length terms in the ordinary course of business to finance the acquisition of fixed assets such as real property, a plant, and/or equipment used in the production of goods in the territory of Canada or the U.S. are includable in the direct cost of processing or direct cost of assembling. Interest will be treated as a direct cost of processing or assembling, but only that portion of the interest which is related to a fixed asset directly used in the production of the goods exported; thus, where an entire production facility is covered by a mortgage and incorporates both production and administrative or other general expense space, an appropriate allocation must be made in order to ensure that only that portion of the interest allocated to the production area is counted toward the value-content requirement. Interest expenses attributable to general and administrative costs or expenses, including interest on funds borrowed to meet the payroll of personnel directly involved in the production of goods, are not considered direct costs of processing or assembly.
Value of originating materials—
Definition. The term “value of materials originating in the United States or Canada or both” means the aggregate of:
The price paid by the producer of exported goods for materials originating in either the United States or Canada, or both, or for materials imported from a third country used or consumed in the production of such originating materials; and
When not included in that price, the following costs related thereto—
Freight, insurance, packing and all other costs incurred in transporting any of the materials referred to in paragraph (b)(1)(i) of this section to the location of the producer;
Duties, taxes and brokerage fees on such materials paid in the United States, or Canada, or both;
The cost of waste or spoilage resulting from the use or consumption of such materials, less the value of renewable scrap or by-product; and
The value of goods and services relating to such materials determined in accordance with subparagraph 1(b) of Article 8 of the Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.
Directly attributable. Whenever a value-content determination is required by the rules of the Agreement and whenever originating materials and materials obtained or produced in a third country are used or consumed together in the production of goods in the United States or Canada, the value of originating materials may be treated as such only to the extent that the value is directly attributable to the goods under consideration.
Interpretation—
Price paid. As provided in paragraph (b)(1) of this section, the “price paid” for materials by the producer of exported goods forms the basis for determining the value of such materials when incorporated in the exported goods. The actual price paid for such materials will determine the value of those materials for purposes of the value-content requirement, even though a relationship between the producer and the seller of the materials may have influenced the price, except where the price did not include items specified in paragraph (b)(1)(ii) of this section that relate to the materials. The following examples will illustrate these principles. Notwithstanding these examples, the totality of the facts must be examined in each case to determine whether § 10.304(b) is applicable.
Originating materials for which no price paid. In cases involving a vertically integrated producer (that is, an entity which produces goods for export from materials which that producer has also made) a “price paid” for such originating materials normally does not exist. Even in the absence of a “price paid”, such a vertically integrated producer may still claim the materials as originating materials for purposes of qualifying the finished goods exported to the United States as goods originating in Canada. However, under paragraph (b)(1)(i) of this section the value of those materials for purposes of applying the value-content requirement is limited to the price paid for those materials imported from the third country plus any costs added thereto under paragraph (b)(1)(ii) of this section. The following examples will illustrate these principles.
Value of goods when exported. The term “value of the goods when exported to the United States” means the aggregate of:
The price paid by the producer for all materials, whether or not the materials originate in the United States, or Canada, or both, and, when not included in the price paid for the materials, the following costs related thereto:
Freight, insurance, packing, and all other costs incurred in transporting all materials to the location of the producer;
Duties, taxes, and brokerage fees on all materials paid in the United States, or Canada, or both;
The cost of waste or spoilage resulting from the use or consumption of such materials, less the value of renewable scrap or by-product; and
The value of goods and services relating to all materials determined in accordance with subparagraph 1(b) of Article 8 of the Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the General Agreement on Tariffs Trade; and
The direct cost of processing or the direct cost of assembling the goods.
Notes, amendments, and revision history
Amendments
[T.D. 92-8, 57 FR 2453, Jan. 22, 1992; 57 FR 4793, Feb. 7, 1992, as amended by T.D. 92-98, 57 FR 46504, Oct. 9, 1992]
Source
Source: Sections 10.301 through 10.311 issued by T.D. 89-3, 53 FR 51766, Dec. 23, 1988, unless otherwise noted.
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. 92-8, 57 FR 2453, Jan. 22, 1992; 57 FR 4793, Feb. 7, 1992, as amended by T.D. 92-98, 57 FR 46504, Oct. 9, 1992]