Upjohn Company v. United States

United States Court of International Trade · 1985 · Civil Procedure

623 F. Supp. 1281 (1985)

Updated July 29, 2026

Civil ProcedureCustoms classificationAmerican goods returnedTSUS item 800.00TSUS item 403.90manufacturenew and different articledistinctive name character or use

Facts

Upjohn manufactured crude 390 HOP in Texas and exported it to its affiliate in the Netherlands. There, the material underwent an evaporation process in a thin film evaporator that separated out a portion of pure MDI, leaving a remainder called crude BLD; no molecular structure changed, but the proportions of components, viscosity, and isocyanate equivalents changed. The crude BLD was then sold back to Upjohn and imported into the United States. Customs classified the imported crude BLD under item 403.90 as a mixture of industrial organic chemicals, while Upjohn claimed it was duty-free under item 800.00 as an American product returned.

Issue

Whether crude BLD imported from the Netherlands was the same American product that had been exported, so that it qualified under item 800.00, TSUS, as a product of the United States returned, or whether the Netherlands processing transformed it into a new manufactured product properly classified under item 403.90.

Rule

Under item 800.00, TSUS, duty-free treatment for returned American products applies only if the imported merchandise is the same merchandise that was exported. If foreign processing transforms the exported material into a new and different article of commerce by changing its character, the imported article is not a product of the United States, and the court need not consider whether it was advanced in value or improved in condition.

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One of 10 multiple-choice questions for this case. Pick an answer to see why.

Cascade Specialty Resins, based in Houston, exports a U.S.-made solvent blend to its affiliate in Antwerp. In Belgium, the blend is run through a low-pressure distillation unit to pull off one valuable component; the returned remainder contains the same ingredients as before but in different proportions and now has a substantially different viscosity and equivalent-weight profile.

If the importer claims duty-free treatment as a U.S. product returned, what is the proper first inquiry?

Explanation. The majority opinion makes the threshold question whether the imported merchandise is the same merchandise that was exported. Only if identity is preserved do advancement in value or improvement in condition matter. Where foreign processing may have transformed the material into a new and different article, the identity issue must be resolved first. (Derived from Upjohn Company v. United States (1985).)