PVC car floor mats classified as motor vehicle accessories, not plastic primary forms or floor coverings.

PVC floor mats for cars made from PVC leather, PU foam, XLPE foam, adhesive, thread and heel pad are classifiable under heading 8708 as motor vehicle parts and accessories because they are finished, tailor-made articles suitable principally for use with motor vehicles, and the HSN specifically includes floor mats other than textile material or unhardened vulcanised rubber. Headings 3904 and 3918 do not apply because 3904 covers PVC in primary forms and 3918 covers floor coverings of plastics in rolls or tiles, which these goods are not. GST is therefore payable at 28%.

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Issues: Whether PVC floor mats for cars, manufactured from PVC leather, PU foam, XLPE foam, adhesive, thread and heel pad, are classifiable under heading 3918 as floor coverings of plastics, under heading 3904 as poly(vinyl chloride) in primary forms, or under heading 8708 as parts and accessories of motor vehicles, and the corresponding rate of GST.

Analysis: Classification under the GST tariff is governed by the General Rules of Interpretation of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975, read with the section notes, chapter notes and HSN explanatory notes. Heading 3904 was held inapplicable because it covers poly(vinyl chloride) in primary forms, whereas the product is a finished manufactured article. Heading 3918 was also rejected because the goods are not floor coverings of plastics in rolls or tiles within the scope of Note 9 to Chapter 39, and the product is not to be treated as a textile floor covering. On the other hand, heading 8708 covers parts and accessories of motor vehicles, and the HSN expressly includes floor mats other than those of textile material or unhardened vulcanised rubber. The product is tailor-made for cars, is suitable principally for use with motor vehicles, and is not excluded by the notes to Section XVII. The exclusion for goods of Chapter 39 or parts of general use did not apply on the facts.

Conclusion: The PVC floor mats for cars were held classifiable under heading 8708, and GST was held payable at 28%.

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