ITC Seeks Comments on Changes to GSP Product Eligibility in 2017-18 Review
The International Trade Commission is launching an investigation into possible additions and removals of products from the Generalized System of Preferences program, it said in a May 23 press release. Conducted in response to a request from the U.S. trade representative, the investigation will inform USTR’s decisions on product eligibility in the ongoing 2017-18 GSP annual review. ITC and the USTR will also in the review consider whether to grant requests for de minimis and competitive need limitations waivers.
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The ITC will hold a public hearing June 14 related to the investigation, with requests to appear due June 4 and pre-hearing briefs due June 7, it said in a notice in the Federal Register. Post-hearing briefs and all other comments on the investigation are due June 21, the ITC said. The commission intends to transmit its report to the USTR by Sept. 7, 2018.
New Products Considered for GSP Eligibility
USTR is considering the following requests for new GSP benefits for certain products, for all GSP-eligible countries. If these products are designated as eligible in USTR’s review, they will become duty free for all GSP countries, with the special program indicator (SPI) “A” added to the special rates of duty column of the tariff schedule:
| HTS Subheading | Description |
| 0808.30.40 | Pears, fresh, if entered during the period from July 1 through the following March 31, inclusive |
| 0814.00.80 | Peel of citrus fruit, excl. orange or citron and peel, nesi, of melon, fresh, frozen, dried or provisionally preserved |
| 1207.29.00 | Cotton seeds, whether or not broken, other than seed for sowing |
| 1512.11.00 | Sunflower-seed or safflower oil, crude, and their fractions, whether or not refined, not chemically modified |
| 2008.99.05 | Apples, otherwise prepared or preserved, nesi B |
| 2918.99.05 | p-Anisic acid; clofibrate and 3-phenoxybenzoic acid |
| 2918.99.43 | Aromatic carboxylic acids with additional oxygen function and their anhydrides, halide, etc deriv described in add US note 3 to sect VI, nesoi |
| 2918.99.47 | Other aromatic carboxylic acids with additional oxygen function and their anhydrides, halide, etc deriv (excluding goods in add US note 3 to sec VI) |
| 4010.33.30 | Transmission V-belts of vulcanized rubber, V-ribbed, circumference exceeding 180 cm but not exceeding 240 cm, combined with textile materials |
Removal of Country-Product Pairs
USTR is also considering petitions for the removal of two products from certain countries. If USTR removes eligibility for these country-product pairs, these products will no longer qualify for GSP benefits when imported from these countries, and SPI “A*” will be added to the special rates of duty column for these products:
| HTS Subheading | Description | Country |
| 2009.89.6011 | Cherry juice – Part of 2009.89.60 “Juice of any other single fruit, nesoi” | Turkey |
| 2009.89.6019 | Cherry juice – Part of 2009.89.60 “Juice of any other single fruit, nesoi” | Turkey |
| 3920.51.50 | Nonadhesive plates, sheets, film, foil and strip, noncellular, not combined with other materials, of polymethyl methacrylate, not flexible | Indonesia |
| 3920.51.50 | Nonadhesive plates, sheets, film, foil and strip, noncellular, not combined with other materials, of polymethyl methacrylate, not flexible | Thailand |
Petitions for CNL Waivers
USTR will consider petitions for waivers of competitive need limitations for five country product pairs. Though imports of these products exceeded maximum levels allowed by GSP, these petitions request a waiver so that they may remain eligible for duty benefits under the program. If USTR does not grant the waivers, these country-product pairs will become ineligible for GSP, and SPI “A*” will be added to the special rates of duty column:
| HTS Subheading | Description | Country |
| 0410.00.00 | Edible products of animal origin, nesi | Indonesia |
| 2836.91.00 | Lithium carbonates | Argentina |
| 3301.13.00 | Essential oils of lemon | Argentina |
| 6802.99.00 | Monumental or building stone & arts. thereof, nesoi, further worked than simply cut/sawn, nesoi | Brazil |
| 7202.50.00 | Ferrosilicon chromium | Kazakhstan |
Redesignation of GSP-Ineligible Country-Product Pairs
USTR has received petitions for the redesignation of seven country-product pairs as eligible for GSP. These products had previously been declared ineligible, including because they exceeded competitive need limitations. If USTR grants these petitions, the following country-product pairs will again become eligible for GSP and the SPI for these subheadings will change to “A” (unless other countries remain ineligible):
| HTS Subheading | Description | Country |
| 2007.99.48 | Apple, quince and pear pastes and purees, being cooked preparations | Argentina |
| 2306.30.00 | Oilcake and other solid residues, resulting from the extraction of vegetable fats or oils, of sunflower seeds | Argentina |
| 2841.90.20 | Ammonium perrhenate | Kazakhstan |
| 2909.50.40 | Odoriferous or flavoring compounds of ether-phenols, etheralcohol-phenols & their halogenated, sulfonated, nitrated, nitrosated derivatives | Indonesia |
| 4107.11.80 | Full grain unsplit whole bovine (not buffalo) nesoi and equine leather nesoi, w/o hair, prepared after tanning or crusting, fancy, not 4114 | Argentina |
| 4412.31.41* | Plywood sheets n/o 6mm thick, with specified tropical wood outer ply, with face ply nesoi, not surface covered beyond clear/transparent | Indonesia |
| 6802.93.00 | Monumental or building stone & arts. thereof, of granite, further worked than simply cut/sawn, nesoi | India |
| 7202.93.80 | Ferroniobium, nesoi | Brazil |
*USTR asked the ITC for additional information on this country-product pair, specifically if it has been produced in the U.S. in the past three years.
Petitions for Denial of de Minimis Waivers
Finally, GSP has received one request for a denial of a de minimis waiver for a country-product pair. Though this country-product pair exceeded maximum import levels for eligibility, it qualifies for a waiver because U.S. imports from all countries fall below a certain threshold. If USTR grants this petition, this country-product pair will be ineligible for GSP despite its eligibility for the de minimis waiver, and the SPI for this product will remain “A*”:
| HTS Number | Description | Country |
| 3802.90.10 | Bone Black | Brazil |
(Federal Register 05/25/18)