The Canada Border Services Agency updated its memorandum on national customs rulings on who can apply. Specifically, the memo was "revised to update the sections as to who may apply for a valuation, origin or marking NCR, and who can sign the consent statement." While the previous memo only mentioned importers, the updated memo says that NCRs "are provided as an administrative service for the convenience and guidance of importers, foreign exporters, and foreign producers." The updated memo also now says that "An importer, foreign exporter or foreign producer of a good, or agents thereof, may request a valuation, origin or marking NCR."

Japan is expected to pass a bill to remove South Korea from its so-called "whitelist" of trusted trading partners as the two countries grow more entrenched in their ongoing trade dispute, according to a July 30 report from The Korea Herald.

India is reducing or exempting its Goods and Services Tax on electric cars, charging stations and certain electric buses, KPMG said in a July 29 report. The changes will reduce the GST rate for electric vehicles from 12 percent to 5 percent, reduce the rate for charging stations for electric vehicles from 18 percent to 5 percent, and will exempt all electric buses hired by local governments from the GST, KPMG said. The changes were announced July 27 and will take effect Aug. 1.

A Micronesian government official was sentenced to 18 months in prison and three years of supervised release after facing money laundering charges that violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the Justice Department said July 30. Master Halbert, a Micronesian Department of Transportation, Communications and Infrastructure official, pleaded guilty to the charges in April (see 1904040035). Halbert conspired with Frank James Lyon, owner of a Honolulu-based engineering and consulting company, to award Lyon corrupt government contracts. Lyon pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 30 months in prison in May (see 1905140033).

The Senate on July 29 failed to override President Donald Trump’s vetoes of three separate resolutions blocking the U.S.’s arms deal with Saudi Arabia and with the United Arab Emirates. The effort failed in each of the votes -- 45-40, 45-39 and 46-41 -- which needed a two-thirds majority to pass. The sales, announced in May by the State Department, used the Arms Export Control Act’s emergency provision to bypass congressional approval and move forward with 22 arms transfers worth about $8 billion to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan.

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer told Sen Pat Roberts, R-Kan., that the U.S and Europe are at an impasse on trade talks, because the EU is not willing to talk about its barriers to U.S. agriculture exports.

The House passed a bill July 25 that urges the president to “prioritize” a new framework to improve export licensing. The provision, part of the Department of State Authorization Act of 2019, said the administration should “streamline licensing” by revising “Special Comprehensive Export Authorizations” for exports to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, any of the organization's member countries, Sweden and any other country described in the Arms Export Control Act. The bill also makes several technical changes to the AECA, including an amendment that changes the purposes for which U.S. military sales are authorized from an “internal security justification” to a “legitimate internal security (including for anti-terrorism purposes).”

The Environmental Protection Agency is proposing new reporting requirements for 31 chemicals under significant new use rules. The proposed SNURs would require notification to EPA at least 90 days in advance of a new use by importers, manufacturers or processors. Importers of chemicals subject to these proposed SNURs would need to certify their compliance with the SNUR requirements should these proposed rules be finalized, EPA said. Exporters of these chemicals would become subject to export notification requirements. Comments on the proposed SNURs are due Aug. 30.

The State Department is designating the mayor of Durres, Albania, and his immediate family members for “involvement in significant corruption,” the agency said in a July 30 press release. Vangjush Dako is being sanctioned under the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act.

Export Compliance Daily is providing readers with some of the top stories for July 22-26 in case they were missed.