Main Idea: CBP has long history of limiting classification of items as furniture in chapter 94, HTSUS, to articles used by humans.

A variety of factors impact a product’s classification under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS).  However, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has long demonstrated that the most important factor in determining whether an item qualifies as furniture under chapter 94, HTSUS, is whether the product was made for use by humans. This longstanding position emerged once again in ruling N330077 (Jan. 17, 2023), where CBP reviewed the tariff classification of a reptile enclosure from China.

The reptile habit enclosure at issue was specifically designed for housing a pet reptile within a person’s home. It was constructed from medium density fiberboard (MDF) panels that were laminated on both sides with bamboo veneers.  The enclosure also featured aluminum framing and a clear acrylic front panel/door that would allow individuals to view the animal in the enclosure.

In its ruling request, the importer proposed that the enclosure be classified under subheading 9403.82.0015, HTSUS, which provides for “Other furniture and parts thereof, Furniture of other materials, including cane, osier, bamboo and similar materials: Of bamboo: Other household.”  CBP disagreed, asserting that “CBP has a long history of limiting furniture in chapter 94, HTSUS, to articles that are used by humans and otherwise meet the definition of furniture.”  Further, CBP cited numerous prior rulings where it declined to classify products similar to the reptile enclosure products under chapter 94, HTSUS, stating that “furniture is specifically limited to such items used by humans.”    

Concluding its analysis, CBP further explained that while chapter 94, HTSUS, does not cover household structures for animals, chapter 44, HTSUS does.  More specifically, the Explanatory Notes (ENs) to the HTSUS, which provide the official interpretation of tariffs at the international level, specifically included animal wood enclosures in heading 4421, HTSUS.  The ENs for heading 4421 notes that the heading includes, in relevant part, “Rabbit-hutches, hen‑coops, bee‑hives, cages, kennels, troughs; yokes for livestock.”  As such, CBP determined that the applicable heading for the reptile habit enclosures would be 4421.91.9880, HTSUS, which provides for “Other articles of wood: Other: Of bamboo: Other: Other:” The rate of duty is 3.3% ad valorem.

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Photo of Maria Vanikiotis Maria Vanikiotis

Maria Vanikiotis is a counsel in the International Trade Group of Crowell & Moring and resident in the firm’s New York office.

Maria has experience in a variety of matters related to the movement of goods across international borders, including problem-solving for importers

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Maria Vanikiotis is a counsel in the International Trade Group of Crowell & Moring and resident in the firm’s New York office.

Maria has experience in a variety of matters related to the movement of goods across international borders, including problem-solving for importers facing Section 232 and Section 301 tariffs, classification of merchandise under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, first sale appraisement programs, free trade agreement origin verifications, country of origin analyses, and other regulatory issues.

Before joining Crowell & Moring, Maria worked for a boutique law firm in New York focusing on customs law and, while in law school, Maria was employed as a summer associate in the Brussels office of a large international law firm on matters related to antitrust and competition law within the European Union. As a law student, Maria published a note comparing collective action approaches to antitrust cases in the U.S., U.K., and E.U., for which she won an award for outstanding legal writing. In addition, Maria was an active and accomplished member of both the Fordham International Law Journal and the Dispute Resolution Society.

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Photo of Simeon Yerokun Simeon Yerokun

imeon Yerokun is a counsel in Crowell & Moring’s International Trade group and based in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office. He advises clients on all areas of import regulatory compliance, trade remedies, and international trade litigation.

Simeon has extensive experience counseling companies in

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imeon Yerokun is a counsel in Crowell & Moring’s International Trade group and based in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office. He advises clients on all areas of import regulatory compliance, trade remedies, and international trade litigation.

Simeon has extensive experience counseling companies in the areas of business and human rights law, including compliance with global anti-forced labor and human rights requirements. He regularly represents companies before U.S. government agencies on forced labor-related matters, including securing the release of goods detained and seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. He also offers deep experience assisting companies in mapping their supply chains, including linking imported products back to their raw materials using enterprise software and other inventory management audit tools. Simeon is highly accomplished in forced labor supply chain mapping and risk assessments, as well as verifying due diligence efforts with on-the-ground visits to client facilities, incorporating third-party intelligence and audit resources.

Simeon’s experience also covers a broad spectrum of trade and customs issues, including those related to import regulatory compliance matters such as valuation, classification, duty drawback, marking and labeling, entry procedures, and penalties; free trade agreements; antidumping and countervailing duty issues; trade litigation; intellectual property issues such as trademark and copyright infringement; the enforcement of exclusion orders issued by the International Trade Commission (ITC); steel and aluminum tariffs under the Section 232 National Security Investigation; and the additional tariffs on products from China under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974.

Additionally, Simeon handles antidumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) investigations before the U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration (ITA) and the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) under the Tariff Act of 1930, and litigation involving the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT).

Prior to joining Crowell, Simeon was a trade and finance attorney in the Office of Chief Counsel—U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and before that, he served as counsel to Commissioner Irving A. Williamson at the U.S. International Trade Commission.

Simeon is a proud graduate of Howard University School of Law, where he served as technical editor of the school’s Human Rights and Globalization Law Review.

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Photo of Emily Devereaux Emily Devereaux

Emily Devereaux is a senior international trade analyst I in Crowell & Moring’s Washington, D.C. office. She provides practice support to the International Trade Group on import regulatory matters pending before the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) and U.S. Customs and

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Emily Devereaux is a senior international trade analyst I in Crowell & Moring’s Washington, D.C. office. She provides practice support to the International Trade Group on import regulatory matters pending before the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). She works closely with attorneys developing courses of action for clients impacted by investigations under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 and Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. She also supports unfair trade investigations, including antidumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) investigations, sunset reviews, and changed circumstance reviews before the Department of Commerce and the International Trade Commission (ITC).

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