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Ironing boards with buyer-supplied inputs: what's the dutiable value of one shipment?

April 2026 examValuation, Appraisement and Duty AssessmentQuestion 74 of 80

A&G, a Minneapolis furniture company, has agreed to purchase 5000 bespoke ironing boards from Kraftsmen, a furniture manufacturer in Slovenia. A&G supplies Kraftsmen with the following inputs to use in the production of the ironing boards, free of charge: • Design specifications created by a Dallas-based furniture designer, purchased for a flat fee of $3200.00. • 2500 yards of cotton fabric, which Kraftsmen procured for $2.00 per yard in Slovenia, then shipped to A&G’s screen printer in Mozambique. A&G paid their screen printer to add a design to the fabric for $1.00 per yard, before returning the fabric to Kraftsmen’s factory in Slovenia. A&G imports the ironing boards to the United States in five shipments of 1000 ironing boards each. A&G agrees to pay Kraftsmen $375,000.00 for the entire order of 5000 ironing boards, not including the value of the assists. If A&G chooses for the total assist value to be apportioned over the entire anticipated production of 5000 ironing boards, what is the dutiable value of one shipment of 1000 ironing boards?

How to get there

1. Sort the buyer-supplied inputs

  • Design specifications by a Dallas designer ($3,200): design work is an assist only if undertaken elsewhere than in the United States (19 CFR 152.102(a)(1)(iv)). Dallas is in the U.S., so not an assist.
  • The fabric: Kraftsmen (the seller) bought it for $2.00/yard, so that cost is already in Kraftsmen's price. A&G paid its Mozambique screen printer $1.00/yard to add a design. That buyer-paid value is supplied free to the producer and incorporated in the boards: an assist.
Assist value2,500 yards × $1.00 = $2,500

2. Apportion over the whole production run

A&G chose to spread the assist over the entire anticipated production of 5,000 boards (one of the permitted apportionment methods):

Calculation$2,500 ÷ 5,000 boards = $0.50 per board
Per 1,000-board shipment: 1,000 × $0.50 = $500
Price per shipment: $375,000 ÷ 5 = $75,000
Dutiable value: $75,000 + $500 = $75,500.00

The answer is A.

Why the other choices are wrong

B) $76,000: an assist of $5,000 ($1,000 per shipment), i.e. counting the $2.00/yard fabric price instead of the $1.00 printing. The fabric was bought by the seller, so its cost is already in the price. Only the buyer-paid printing is an assist.
C) $76,140: adds a share of the $3,200 Dallas design ($640 per shipment) to the $500. U.S. design work isn't an assist.
D) $77,140: counts the fabric at $3.00/yard ($1,500 per shipment) and the U.S. design ($640). Both errors at once.
Tip
Assist questions in two steps: (1) Is it an assist? (supplied by the buyer, free or at reduced cost, in an eligible category, and for design, done outside the U.S.) (2) How is it apportioned? (first shipment, by units shipped, or over the anticipated production, as the importer elects). Count only value the buyer supplied, not the seller's own costs.

Sources: 19 CFR 152.102(a); 19 CFR 152.103 (assist valuation and apportionment) (eCFR). CBP key cites 19 CFR 151.102–103.

CBP answer key: Answer A · 19 CFR 151.102-103Source: CBP past exams ↗