Printed wrappers and labels are classified by their character as printed goods, not by base material alone.

Printed wrappers and labels were treated as printed products of the printing industry for classification under Heading 4901.90, because the amended tariff entry from 1-3-1987 was not confined to paper-based goods. The HSN explanatory scheme likewise showed that Chapter 49 was not limited to paper alone. As a result, the base material-whether paper, plastic, or composite sheets-did not control classification where the goods retained the character of printed products. The departmental view that base material was decisive was therefore unsustainable.

---

---

Issues: Whether the classification of printed wrappers and labels under Heading 4901.90 depended upon the base material used, namely paper, plastic, or a combination of both.

Analysis: The relevant tariff entry, as amended from 1-3-1987, no longer confined Chapter 49 to products of the printing industry based only on paper. The explanatory scheme of the HSN, on which the entry was based, also showed that the coverage was not restricted to paper-based products. Since the goods in question were printed products of the printing industry, the base material did not control their classification for the period in dispute.

Conclusion: The classification under Heading 4901.90 was not displaced merely because the goods were made on plastic or composite sheets, and the departmental view treating the base material as decisive was unsustainable.

Ratio Decidendi: After the amendment to the relevant tariff entry, printed products of the printing industry are classified by their character as printed goods, and not by the base material alone, where the tariff and HSN scheme do not confine the entry to paper-based products.

---