AND 02.06 B I ( B ) 5 ( AA ), WHEREAS THE CUSTOMS AUTHORITIES CONSIDER THAT THEY COME WITHIN TARIFF SUBHEADINGS 02.01 A III ( A ) 2 AND 02.01 A III ( A ) 4 .
4IN ORDER TO BE APPRISED OF THE CRITERIA TO BE APPLIED WHEN CLASSIFYING THESE GOODS FOR TARIFF PURPOSES THE BUNDESFINANZHOF HAS REFERRED THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS TO THE COURT FOR A PRELIMINARY RULING :
1 . DOES THE TERM ' ' FROZEN ' ' IN TARIFF HEADING 02.01 COVER NOT ONLY MEAT WHICH HAS BEEN FROZEN WHEN FRESH BUT ALSO MEAT WHICH HAS FIRST BEEN ' ' SLIGHTLY DRIED ' ' WITHIN THE MEANING OF TARIFF SUBHEADING 02.06 B I ( B ) 3 ( AA ) AND B I ( B ) 5 ( AA ) AND ONLY THEN FROZEN?
IF THE ANSWER TO THIS QUESTION IS IN THE NEGATIVE :
2 . HOW IS THE TERM ' ' FRESH ' ' IN TARIFF HEADING 02.01 TO BE DISTINGUISHED FROM THE TERM ' ' SLIGHTLY DRIED ' ' IN TARIFF SUBHEADINGS 02.06 B I ( B ) 3 ( AA ) AND B I ( B ) 5 ( AA)?
5THE BUNDESFINANZHOF BY THESE QUESTIONS HAS ASKED THE COURT IN SUBSTANCE WHETHER AND TO WHAT EXTENT HEADING 02.01 OF THE COMMON CUSTOMS TARIFF COVERS PRODUCTS SUCH AS THOSE MENTIONED BY SUBHEADINGS 02.06 B I ( B ) 3 ( AA ) AND 5 ( AA ) WHICH HAVE BEEN FIRST ' ' SLIGHTLY DRIED ' ' AND SUBSEQUENTLY ' ' FROZEN ' ' .
6HEADING 02.01 OF THE COMMON CUSTOMS TARIFF APPLIES TO ' ' MEAT AND EDIBLE OFFALS . . . FRESH , CHILLED OR FROZEN ' ' INCLUDING HAMS AND LOINS , UNBONED ( BONE-IN ), OF SUBHEADINGS 02.01 A III ( A)2 AND 02.01 A III ( A ) 4 .
7AS FAR AS HEADING 02.06 IS CONCERNED IT APPLIES TO SALTED MEAT AND TO DRIED OR SMOKED MEAT AND IN MOST OF ITS SUBHEADINGS DRAWS A DISTINCTION BETWEEN MEAT WHICH HAS BEEN DRIED OR SMOKED IN THE NORMAL WAY AND MEAT WHICH HAS BEEN ONLY ' ' SLIGHTLY ' ' DRIED OR SMOKED .
8IN PARTICULAR ' ' SLIGHTLY DRIED ' ' OR ' ' SLIGHTLY SMOKED ' ' HAMS AND LOINS ARE MENTIONED IN TARIFF SUBHEADINGS 02.06 B I ( B ) 3 ( AA ) AND 02.06 B I ( B ) 5 ( AA )
9ADDITIONAL NOTE 3 TO CHAPTER 2 OF THE COMMON CUSTOMS TARIFF PROVIDES THAT ' ' FOR THE PURPOSES OF SUBHEADINGS 02.06 B I ( B ) 3 ( AA ), . . ., 5 ( AA ) . . ., PRODUCTS WHOSE WATER/PROTEIN RATIO IN THE MEAT ( NITROGEN CONTENT MULTIPLIED BY 6.25 ) IS MORE THAN 2.8 SHALL BE CONSIDERED AS SLIGHTLY DRIED AND SLIGHTLY SMOKED ' ' .
10ALTHOUGH THIS DETAILED EXPLANATION ENABLES PRODUCTS HAVING A WATER/PROTEIN RATIO EQUAL TO OR LESS THAN 2.8 TO BE CLASSIFIED UNDER