CBP is still aiming to propose rules for a Section 321 data collection process that are based on the Section 321 data pilot and Entry Type 86 test (see 2101290033), said Christopher Mabelitini, acting director, Intellectual Property Rights & E-Commerce Division, July 18 during CBP’s Trade Facilitation and Cargo Security Summit. "What we're working on, to expand off of the current pilots we have now and to bring the two together, is a draft regulatory framework that's being drafted this year," he said. Mabelitini said he expects a two- to three-year time frame to get the draft notice out for public comment.
Tim Warren
Timothy Warren is Executive Managing Editor of Communications Daily. He previously led the International Trade Today editorial team from the time it was purchased by Warren Communications News in 2012 through the launch of Export Compliance Daily and Trade Law Daily. Tim is a 2005 graduate of the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts and lives in Maryland with his wife and three kids.
DHS published its fall 2022 regulatory agenda for CBP. There were no new trade-related rulemakings included, though upcoming regulations on continuing education requirements for customs brokers is now listed at the final rule stage.
CBP posted more documents ahead of the June 29 Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) meeting:
CBP's operational guidance for importers about complying with the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (see 2206140037) left too many importer subjects unanswered, the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) Forced Labor Working Group said in a document released ahead of the June 29 COAC meeting. "While CBP’s Importer Guidance provides general information, it disappointingly does not reflect incorporation of the many practical recommendations that have been submitted over the years," the group said. "CBP must increase transparency, engagement, and communication, early and often, with the Trade community regarding the current process for enforcement as well as the detention or release of goods believed to be linked to forced labor."
DHS posted the Forced Labor Enforcement Strategy document from the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force on June 17. The document was required under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which creates a rebuttable presumption that as of June 21 goods connected to the Xinjiang region in China are made with forced labor. Included in the document is "comprehensive assessment of the risk of importing goods mined, produced, or manufactured, wholly or in part, with forced labor," the task force said. Also included is an "evaluation and description of forced-labor schemes, UFLPA-required lists (including the UFLPA Entity List), UFLPA-required plans, and high priority sectors for enforcement."
CBP posted multiple documents ahead of the June 29 Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) meeting:
CBP announced the calendar year 2022 tariff rate quota for tuna in airtight containers. It said 14,672,350 kilograms of tuna in airtight containers may be entered and withdrawn from warehouse for consumption during 2022, at the rate of 6% under Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading 1604.14.22. Any such tuna that is entered or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption during the current calendar year in excess of this quota will be dutiable at the rate of 12.5% under HTS subheading 1604.14.30.
CBP released an "operational guidance for importers" June 13 that explains the processes involved in Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act enforcement. The guidance puts in writing much of what was described in recent webinars (see 2206080033, 2206010034 and 2206020055) hosted by CBP on the UFLPA rebuttable presumption that goods involving the Xinjiang region of China are made with forced labor and illegal to import unless the importer can prove otherwise. The rebuttable presumption goes into effect June 21, and CBP plans to issue a more detailed "strategy" document on that day.
Social compliance audits meant to show to CBP the lack of Xinjiang forced labor for imports suspected to be subject to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act would require additional proof that the auditors weren't interfered with by the government or the company involved, said Thomas Kendrick, CBP assistant director of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Center of Excellence and Expertise. Kendrick and other CBP officials discussed UFLPA compliance on June 7 during the second of three webinars on the subject (see 2206010034).
The 11 withhold release orders currently in place that involve companies or products from the Xinjiang region in China will become subject to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act as of June 21, said Elva Muneton, CBP acting executive director for the UFLPA Implementation Task Force, while speaking to a Los Angeles Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders Association webinar June 2. That means goods subject to those WROs that are detained by CBP as of June 21 will require clear and convincing evidence that forced labor wasn't involved to be allowed to enter the U.S, she said. Before June 21, those detained goods would continue through the WRO process, Muneton said.