TARIFF CLASSIFICATION | 2026-09-24

Two Model Numbers Now Inside the Orders: Commerce Finds Zongshen's 5C65M0 and BC70M0 Engines Are Later-Developed Merchandise

A circumvention determination that names specific models rather than a product category — and the second later-developed-merchandise finding against Chinese goods in three days.

On September 24, 2026 the U.S. Department of Commerce determined that imports of model numbers 5C65M0 and BC70M0 of small vertical shaft engines produced by Chongqing Zongshen General Power Machine Co., Ltd. in the People's Republic of China constitute later-developed merchandise that circumvents the antidumping and countervailing duty orders on certain vertical shaft engines between 99cc and up to 225cc, and parts thereof, from China. The determination is applicable September 24, 2026, in cases

On September 24, 2026 the U.S. Department of Commerce published a determination in cases A-570-124 and C-570-125 finding that imports of model numbers 5C65M0 and BC70M0 of small vertical shaft engines, produced by Chongqing Zongshen General Power Machine Co., Ltd. in the People's Republic of China, constitute later-developed merchandise that circumvents the antidumping and countervailing duty orders on certain vertical shaft engines between 99cc and up to 225cc, and parts thereof, from China.

These are the engines that power walk-behind mowers, pressure washers, generators and similar outdoor equipment. For California distributors and equipment assemblers, this determination is worth reading closely because of how it is framed.

A determination that names models, not a category

Most scope and circumvention disputes are arguments about descriptive language — whether a product falls inside a definition written in general terms. This one identifies two specific model numbers from one named producer.

That has two consequences, pulling in opposite directions.

It is narrower: the determination as stated reaches those models from that producer, not every engine in the displacement range.

It is also sharper: there is no interpretive room. An importer cannot argue that its engine is materially different from the covered description when the covered description is its own part number. Checking exposure is a matter of reading a model number off a shipment, which takes minutes.

Later-developed merchandise, twice in three days

The theory here is later-developed merchandise — the provision that reaches a product which did not exist in that form when the order was written, and which the scope language therefore could not have described.

Commerce applied the same theory on September 22, 2026 to compacted graphite iron brake drums from China, finding that a change of material brought a product within orders written around gray cast iron. Two applications in three days, against different industries, is a signal about enforcement posture rather than a coincidence.

The general lesson is the one worth carrying away. An importer who reads a scope description, notes that its product differs from what is described, and concludes it is outside the order has completed only half the analysis. The later-developed-merchandise provision exists precisely to reach that reasoning. Product development that happens to move a good outside an order's literal words is exactly the fact pattern it addresses.

It is worth distinguishing this from the third-country assembly theory Commerce applied to steel wire garment hangers completed in Cambodia from Chinese and Vietnamese wire, also in September 2026. That provision reaches a change in the route. Later-developed merchandise reaches a change in the product. Between them they cover the two most common commercial responses to an order.

What importers of small engines and finished equipment should do

First, check your part numbers against 5C65M0 and BC70M0. This is a mechanical check against purchase orders, packing lists and engine plates, and it should be done for every shipment in the period the determination can reach — not only for goods on order.

Second, identify your producer. The determination names Chongqing Zongshen. An importer buying finished equipment through an assembler may not know whose engine is inside it, and that is the question to put to the supplier in writing.

Third, look at finished goods, not only loose engines. Where an engine is imported already fitted to a mower or pressure washer, whether the orders reach the finished article is a scope question in its own right, decided on the scope language rather than on the assumption that assembly changes the answer.

Fourth, identify unliquidated entries. Circumvention determinations routinely carry a retroactive suspension of liquidation tied to the initiation of the inquiry rather than to the determination date — the brake drums determination reached back roughly eight months, and the hangers determination thirteen. Establish from the notice and the accompanying instructions which entries are affected rather than assuming the effect is prospective.

Fifth, check bond sufficiency before CBP does. A retroactive cash deposit obligation across several months of entries changes continuous bond arithmetic quickly, and an insufficient bond is an enforcement problem separate from the duties themselves.

Sixth, if sourcing shifts in response, do the country of origin and substantial transformation analysis before the goods move rather than after. Moving assembly to a third country while the engine or its key components still originate in China is the pattern the third-country provision addresses, and a supplier's assurance about origin is not a substitute for the analysis.

Why a model-number finding is harder to work around than a scope ruling

Importers sometimes treat an adverse scope outcome as a design problem — adjust a specification, move outside the described range, resume importing. That response is available when the covered description is written in terms of measurable characteristics.

It is much weaker here. The determination identifies merchandise by producer and model number, and it does so through the later-developed-merchandise provision, which exists specifically to follow product development. Introducing a successor model is the exact conduct that provision anticipates, so a new part number is not, by itself, a way out — it is an invitation to a further inquiry on the same theory.

The other reason the design response is weak is evidentiary. A model number appears on the engine plate, the packing list, the purchase order and the entry documentation. Unlike a contested metallurgical or dimensional characteristic, there is nothing for an importer to characterise favourably and nothing for CBP to have to prove through testing. Either the number on the goods is one of the two named, or it is not.

What remains genuinely open is whether a given successor model shares the characteristics that made these two later-developed merchandise. That is a real argument, and it is made on the record of a new inquiry — not asserted at entry.

Classification discipline is what makes any of this arguable

Whether a particular engine or finished unit falls inside these orders is decided on product characteristics — displacement, configuration, the presence and nature of parts — measured against the scope language. That is closely related to, though not identical with, tariff classification.

An importer whose classification positions were analysed and documented before entry is in a position to argue a scope question. One whose positions vary by shipment without explanation is not, and will find that the inconsistency itself becomes the subject of the conversation with CBP.

Where this leaves the market

The orders on vertical shaft engines between 99cc and 225cc from China have now been extended, through this determination, to two models that were developed after they issued. Importers should expect that where a producer develops further variants within the same displacement range, the same provision is available to Commerce again.

Planning around a specific model number that currently sits outside an order is therefore a short-term position, not a strategy. The durable questions are about origin, pricing and contractual allocation of duty risk.

Trembach Law Firm advises importers, distributors and equipment manufacturers on scope and circumvention inquiries, classification, and the CBP enforcement that follows them. To assess whether these models or your finished goods are affected, call (818) 514-7680 or contact a customs defense attorney.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which engines does this determination cover?

Model numbers 5C65M0 and BC70M0 of small vertical shaft engines produced by Chongqing Zongshen General Power Machine Co., Ltd. in China. Commerce determined they are later-developed merchandise circumventing the antidumping and countervailing duty orders on certain vertical shaft engines between 99cc and up to 225cc, and parts thereof, from China.

What does later-developed merchandise mean?

It reaches a product that did not exist in that form when the order was written, so the scope language could not have described it. An importer who reads a scope description, sees that its product differs, and concludes it sits outside the order has done only half the analysis — this provision exists precisely to reach that reasoning.

Can I avoid this by switching to a different model number?

That is weaker than it looks. The finding was made through the later-developed-merchandise provision, which exists to follow product development, so introducing a successor model invites a further inquiry on the same theory rather than solving the problem. What remains genuinely arguable is whether a specific successor shares the characteristics that made these two later-developed merchandise, and that is decided on the record of a new inquiry.

Does this reach finished equipment with the engine already fitted?

That is a separate scope question, decided on the scope language rather than on an assumption that assembly changes the answer. Importers of finished mowers, pressure washers or generators should establish whose engine is inside the unit and what model number it carries.

Could duties apply to entries I have already made?

Possibly. Circumvention determinations routinely carry a retroactive suspension of liquidation tied to the initiation of the inquiry rather than to the determination date — a related determination on brake drums reached back roughly eight months, and one on garment hangers thirteen. Establish the affected period from the notice and the accompanying instructions rather than assuming the effect is prospective.

This article is provided for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Scope and circumvention matters turn on the specific products, producers and entry records involved, and no particular outcome is guaranteed. Consult a qualified attorney about your own circumstances.

Contact Trembach Law Firm at (818) 514-7680 for a confidential consultation.

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