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NY E89509
November 16, 1999
CLA-2-97:RR:NC:SP:233 E89509
CATEGORY: Classification
TARIFF NO.: 9701.10.0000
Ms. Samantha-Jane Haigh
Christie’s
8 King Street, St. James’s
London SW1Y 6QT
England
RE: The tariff classification of a painting from England.
Dear Ms. Haigh:
In your letter dated November 2, 1999, you requested a tariff classification ruling. The work of art to be imported is a Persian (Iranian) watercolor on paper entitled "Europeans in Iran." It depicts a scene of a European gentleman in the foreground entertained by a musician and a lady offering him wine, another Eurpoean seated in the foreground, other Iranian figures, signed above Ahmad Yazdi and dated 1272. Since the painting is considered "informational material," a Foreign Assets Control license is not required.
The applicable subheading for the painting will be 9701.10.0000, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS), which provides for: Paintings, drawings and pastels, executed entirely by hand, other than drawings of heading 4906. The rate of duty will be free.
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. 177).
A copy of the ruling or the control number indicated above should be provided with the entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is imported. If you have any questions regarding the ruling, contact National Import Specialist Lawrence Mushinske at 212-637-7061.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director,
National Commodity
Specialist Division
No external link available.
1) Compare with other customs rulings involving 560.206 of the ITSR. Here, CBP implies that, in principle, "Iranian-origin goods" subject to 560.206 include items that are over 700 years old, and even when they are located in a third country, but in this case the informational materials exemption overrode the prohibition.
2) Together, CROSS Customs Ruling NY I82142, CROSS Customs Ruling NY E89509, CROSS Customs Ruling NY G83530 and CROSS Customs Ruling NY F83946 appear to stand for the propositions that i) there is no limit to how old an item may be, it is subject to 560.206 if it originates in the territory of what is modern-day Iran (and possibly even the predecessor state whose boundaries were different from the current one), but ii) for items that have been outside of Iran since before the embargo was imposed—but only those items—OFAC may accommodate such situations without issuing licenses.
560.303 provides that "The term Iran means the territory of Iran and any other territory or marine area, including the exclusive economic zone and continental shelf, over which the Government of Iran claims sovereignty." The relation back to the "territory" serves as the basis for considering even ancient Persia as within the scope of "Iran" for the purposes of the regulations.