Tariff classification of oil seal rings turns on general use, not engine-only description or part-number suffixes.

Machinery parts of general use, including oil seal rings, were held classifiable under Heading 84.65 of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 where the catalogue showed the same seals had applications beyond internal combustion engines. The invoice description as engine spares did not confine the goods to Heading 84.06, and differences in suffixes or part numbers did not create a separate tariff classification. The goods were therefore classified under Heading 84.65 and not under Heading 84.06.

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Issues: Whether simmering oil seals imported as spare parts for an internal combustion engine were correctly classifiable under Heading 84.06 of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 or under Heading 84.65 of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 as machinery parts of general use, and whether differences in suffixes and part numbers altered the classification.

Analysis: The goods were described in the invoice as spares for internal combustion engine simmering oil seals, but the catalogue produced showed that the same type of seals had varied applications in motor vehicles and other machinery parts, including propeller shaft and layshaft. The relevant heading 84.65 covered machinery parts not falling under any other heading in the chapter, and the explanatory material specifically included oil seal rings. On the material before it, the classification could not be confined to engine use alone, and the different suffixes in the part numbers did not determine a separate tariff treatment.

Conclusion: The goods were correctly classifiable under Heading 84.65 of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 and not under Heading 84.06 of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975.

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