HQ 954587
August 24, 1993


CLA-2 CO:R:C:M 954587 DWS

CATEGORY: Classification

TARIFF NO.: 7318.15.80

District Director
U.S. Customs Service
511 N.W. Broadway, Federal Building
Portland, OR 97209

RE: Protest No. 2904-93-100123; Threaded Fasteners; Screws; Bolts;
HQ 075964; HQ 951362; HQ 084581; 7318.15.20

Dear District Director:

The following is our decision regarding the request for
further review of Protest No. 2904-93-100123 concerning your action
in classifying and assessing duty on threaded fasteners under the
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS).

FACTS:

The merchandise consists of threaded fasteners for use in
motor vehicles. Except for a photostat copy of the merchandise,
the protestant has not furnished any samples, drawings, or
descriptive information concerning the fasteners.

The fasteners were entered under subheading 7318.15.20, HTSUS,
as bolts. The entry was liquidated on March 19, 1992, under
subheading 7318.15.80, HTSUS, as other screws having shanks or
threads with a diameter of 6mm or more. The protest was timely
filed on June 17, 1993.

The subheadings under consideration are as follows:

7318.15.20: [s]crews, bolts, nuts, coach screws, screw hooks,
rivets, cotters, cotter pins, washers (including
spring washers) and similar articles, of iron or
steel: [t]hreaded articles: [o]ther screws and
bolts, whether or not with their nuts or washers:
[b]olts and bolts and their nuts or washers
entered or exported in the same shipment.

The general, column one rate of duty is 0.7 percent ad
valorem.

7318.15.80: [t]hreaded articles: [o]ther screws and bolts,
whether or not with their nuts or washers:
[o]ther: [h]aving shanks or threads with a
diameter of 6mm or more.

The general, column one rate of duty is 9.5 percent ad
valorem.

ISSUE:

Whether the threaded fasteners are classifiable under
subheading 7318.15.20, HTSUS, as bolts, or under subheading
7318.15.80, HTSUS, as other screws having shanks or threads with
a diameter of 6mm or more?

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

Classification of merchandise under the HTSUS is in accordance
with the General Rules of Interpretation (GRI's), taken in order.
GRI 1 provides that classification is determined according to the
terms of the headings and any relative section or chapter notes.

In HQ 075964, dated January 31, 1986, it was stated that:

[t]he tariff classification of a threaded fastener is
determined primarily by its design characteristics and not
necessarily by the chief service application or the trade
name given by the manufacturer or seller.

This classification criteria is reinforced by an American
National Standards Institute (ANSI) specification which establishes
a recommended procedure for determining the identity of externally
threaded fasteners. See HQ 951362, dated June 24, 1992. ANSI
describes bolts and screws as follows:

[a] bolt is an externally threaded fastener designed for
insertion through holes in assembled parts, and is normally
intended to be tightened or released by torquing a nut.

A screw is an externally threaded fastener capable of being
inserted into holes in assembled parts, of mating with a
preformed internal thread or forming its own thread, and of
being tightened or released by torquing the head.

A bolt is designed for assembly with a nut. A screw has
features in its design which makes it capable of being used
in a tapped or other preformed hole in the work. Because of
the basic design, it is possible to use certain types of
screws in combination with a nut. Any externally threaded
fastener which has a majority of the design
characteristics which assist its proper use in a tapped
or other preformed hole is a screw, regardless of how it is
used in its service application.

ANSI/ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers) B 18.2.1
(1981).

ANSI provides four "Primary Criteria" and nine "Supplementary
Criteria" for consideration in distinguishing bolts from screws.
If the fastener conforms to any of the "Primary Criteria" for
either a bolt or a screw, it is classified accordingly. If none
of the "Primary Criteria" are met, one must look to the
"Supplementary Criteria". "The Supplementary Criteria detail the
principal
features in the design of an externally threaded fastener which
contribute to its proper use as a screw. A fastener having a
majority of these characteristics shall be identified as a screw."
ANSI/ASME B 18.2.1 (1981).

In HQ 084581, dated August 28, 1990, involving the
classification of a shoulder fastener, we relied on the procedure
established by ANSI. It was stated that:

[t]he design characteristics which the ANSI considers to
determine if a fastener is a screw include the following: the
presence of a controlled fillet at the junction of the head
with the body, a smooth and flat under head bearing surface,
the angularity of the under head bearing surface, a closely
controlled body, a straight shank, concentric threads, the
length of the threads, a specially prepared point on its
end, and the length of the fastener.

The protestant did not provide any samples, drawings, or
descriptive information concerning the fasteners. The supplied
photostat copy of the fasteners is not sufficient in demonstrating
their characteristics and dimensions. Your office applied the
above ANSI standards to the merchandise and it was determined that
the fasteners are not bolts. Based upon previous case precedent
concerning this issue, and the fact that the protestant has failed
to identify the fasteners sufficiently so that they may be compared
with fastener industry standards, it is our position that your
office acted correctly in classifying and assessing duty on the
fasteners.

HOLDING:

The threaded fasteners are classifiable under subheading
7318.15.80, HTSUS, as other screws having shanks or threads with
a diameter of 6mm or more.

The protest should be denied. A copy of this decision should
be attached to the Customs Form 19 and provided to the protestant
as part of the notice of action on the protest.

Sincerely,


John Durant, Director