Post-entry audits of customs filings remain outside of "customs business" and therefore don't require broker licensing, said Myles Harmon, director-commercial and trade facilitation at CBP, in ruling HQ114654. The ruling was in response to a request from Koot & Associates, which asked for CBP input on the legal status of a new subsidiary providing "customs compliance services." The company asked CBP whether employees of the new offices, who will work to identify errors in entry documents using post-entry audit software, are performing "customs business."
CBP's Office of Information and Technology has posted an updated list of companies/persons offering ABI data processing services to the trade community.
CBP issued a blanket Snow Day to filers whose computer access has been interrupted due to the storm on Oct. 29-30, the agency said in a CSMS message. This applies to entries filed in the ports that were closed because of the storm or prepared at remote location filing entries from the affected ports, said CBP. The policy also applies to entries not directly affected by the storm, but whose filers use computer systems that are located in areas that lost power due to the storm, the agency said.
CBP Seattle received one application to provide a Centralized Examination Station (CES) at the Port of Tacoma, it said in a Trade Information Notice (TIN). Comments regarding the applicant, Konoike-Pacific Tacoma Terminals, can be submitted through Nov. 28. to Area Port Director, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, 1000 2nd Ave., Suite 2100, Seattle WA 98104. The TIN includes the application and proposed CES fees.
CBP issued its weekly tariff rate quota and tariff preference level commodity report as of Oct. 29. This report includes TRQs on various products such as beef, sugar, dairy products, peanuts, cotton, cocoa products, and tobacco; and certain BFTA, DR-CAFTA, Israel FTA, JFTA, MFTA, OFTA, SFTA, UAFTA (AFTA) and UCFTA (Chile FTA) non-textile TRQs etc. Each report also includes the AGOA, ATPDEA, BFTA, DR-CAFTA, CBTPA, Haitian HOPE, MFTA, NAFTA, OFTA, SFTA, and UCFTA TPLs and TRQs for qualifying textile articles and/or other articles; the TRQs on worsted wool fabrics, etc.
CBP posted an Oct. 30 version of its CF 1400 (Record of Vessel in Foreign Trade Entrances) electronic query report of the Vessel Management System (VMS), in accordance with 19 CFR 4.95, organized by entrances. CBP also posted a version of its CF 1401 (Record of Vessel in Foreign Trade Clearances) electronic query report of the VMS, in accordance with 19 CFR 4.95, organized by clearances.
CBP sent a CSMS message reminding Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement filers of origination requirements for preference claims. When a Korea FTA preference claim is made on an importation into the U.S., an importer must have either a certification of origin in its possession, or the claim may be based on importer knowledge that the good is an originating good, including a reasonable reliance on information in the importer’s possession, said CBP.
CBP declined to support a Great Idea Form (GIF) for ultimate consignee reports due to confidentiality concerns, according to the September Trade Support Network (TSN) report. The GIF was prepared at the request of the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA), which is concerned over the ability to fraudulently list GMA members a consignee. CBP said they "cannot support this GIF as it would be a clear violation of confidentiality" because the "importer’s business data is protected information which CBP cannot share with a third party," said the TSN report.
CBP is requesting comments by Dec. 31 for an existing information collection on trademarks and copyrights. CBP proposes to extend the expiration date of this information collection without a change to the burden hours or to the information collected. The notice is scheduled to run in the Federal Register Oct. 31.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related issues: