The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is extending 77 COVID-19 related tariff exclusions as well as the 352 Section 301 exclusions that were restored in March 2022. Both sets of exclusions were set to expire Dec. 31; now they will last through May 31.
A bipartisan Customs Modernization bill would allow CBP to use advance data to enforce customs laws, permit summary forfeiture of certain goods that infringe on intellectual property rights, and allow for streamlined disposition of detained de minimis packages, when CBP did not receive a response from the shipper.
DHS will add three more entities to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, it said in a notice released Dec. 8. Anhui Xinya New Materials Co., Ltd. (formerly known as Chaohu Youngor Color Spinning Technology Co., Ltd. and Chaohu Xinya Color Spinning Technology Co., Ltd.); COFCO Sugar Holdings Co., Ltd.; and Sichuan Jingweida Technology Group Co., Ltd. (also known as Sichuan Mianyang Jingweida Technology Co., Ltd. and JWD Technology; and formerly known as Mianyang High-tech Zone Jingweida Technology Co., Ltd.) are being added for “working with the government of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region to recruit, transport, transfer, harbor or receive forced labor or Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, or members of other persecuted groups out of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region." The new listings will take effect Dec. 11.
The Court of International Trade in a Nov. 30 opinion said that it is likely to have jurisdiction over Chinese exporter Ninestar Corp.'s challenge to its placement on the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List. Following Ninestar's motion for a preliminary injunction against its placement on the list, Judge Gary Katzmann ruled more narrowly, holding Ninestar is likely to show that jurisdiction is proper under Section 1581(i), the court's "residual" jurisdiction, which covers any civil action regarding "embargoes or other quantitative restrictions." While the U.S. said the UFLPA Entity List does not create an embargo since it establishes a rebuttable presumption, Katzmann said the court has exerted jurisdiction over similar embargoes where exemptions or reconsideration are granted.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Nov. 13 said then-President Donald Trump legally revoked a Section 201 safeguard tariff exclusion on bifacial solar panels, in a decision that gives the president wide discretion in taking tariff action. Reversing the Court of International Trade's decision, Judges Alan Lourie, Richard Taranto and Leonard Stark said the president did not clearly misconstrue the statute to find that he could make a trade-restricting modification to past Section 201 tariff action.
DHS will add three more entities to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, it said in a notice released Sept. 26. Xinjiang Tianmian Foundation Textile Co., Ltd.; Xinjiang Tianshan Wool Textile Co. Ltd.; Xinjiang Zhongtai Group Co. Ltd. are being added for “working with the government of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region to recruit, transport, transfer, harbor or receive forced labor or Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, or members of other persecuted groups out of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.” The new listings will take effect Sept. 27.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is extending by three months 77 COVID-19 related tariff exclusions as well as the 352 Section 301 exclusions that were restored in March 2022. Both sets of exclusions, which were to expire at the end of September, will last through Dec. 31.
The Commerce Department on Aug. 18 announced its final determination that imports of solar cells and modules from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam are circumventing antidumping and countervailing duties on solar cells from China. The agency made minor changes from its preliminary determination, finding Cambodia’s New East Solar circumvented duties and excluding it from the certification process for duty exemptions, as well as excluding Vietnam’s Vina from the certification process but making VSUN eligible.
DHS will add three entities to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, the agency said Aug. 1. The additions, effective Aug. 2, will add Chinese battery manufacturer Camel Group Co. for working with the Xinjiang government to “recruit, transport, transfer, harbor or receive forced labor or Uyghurs” and other persecuted groups. Chinese spice manufacturer ChenGuang Biotech Group Co., Ltd. and its subsidiary, Chenguang Biotechnology Group Yanqi Co. Ltd., will be added for sourcing material from Xinjiang or from entities in the region that are involved in a “government labor scheme that uses forced labor,” DHS said.
CBP released on June 22 its final rule on continuing education for licensed customs brokers. The notice details requirements for individual brokers to meet the continuing education requirements, as well as the accreditation process for courses. As expected, the agency will require brokers to complete 36 hours of continuing education each triennial reporting cycle, beginning with the cycle ending in 2027.