New York Reps. Peter King (R) and Gregory Meeks (D) on Dec. 14, introduced H.R. 4657, the Customs Business Fairness Act, which would provide relief to customs brokers for duties paid on behalf of importers who declare bankruptcy. The National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America is trying to get co-sponsors for the legislation and has drafted a “Dear Congressman” letter to circulate among House members aimed at galvanizing support for the bill, the NCBFAA said in an email to members. The trade group mentioned its support for such legislation earlier this year (see 1709110033). The King-Meeks bill would recognize when customs brokers provide funds to CBP on behalf of the importer and would spare them from liability for those funds, the NCBFAA said.
Customs Duty
A Customs Duty is a tariff or tax which a country imposes on goods when they are transported across international borders. Customs Duties are used to protect countries' economies, residents, jobs, and environments, by limiting the flow of imported merchandise, especially restricted and prohibited goods, into the country. The Customs Duty Rate is a percentage determined by the value of the article purchased in the foreign country and not based on quality, size, or weight.
Customs brokers will be able to file their 2018 triennial reports and pay their broker license fees beginning on Dec. 15, CBP said in a CSMS message. The fees and reports, which must be filed by Feb. 28, may be submitted online via the website Pay.gov. The $100 fee may be paid by credit card, debit card, PayPal or Amazon Pay, with no additional transaction fees. Though the fees may also be paid in person or by mail at the port that originally delivered the license, CBP is actively encouraging brokers to use the electronic payment option, which allows brokers to “save time and submit online,” said Troy Riley, executive director for commercial targeting and enforcement at CBP, at a recent agency conference.
CBP should remove from its regulations a limit of "one shipment per day" for imports under $800, the National Association of Manufacturers said in comments to the agency about rules considered onerous (see 1712120024). That shipment limit goes against "modern business practices where manufacturers may need to import commodities, component[s] or other goods on a 'just in time' basis," NAM said. "Manufacturers recommend that CBP eliminate the one shipment per day provision to be consistent with the" Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act, which raised the dollar value of the de minimis threshold.
The Commerce Department set the 12-month 2018 value-added tariff preference level for certain apparel imported directly from Haiti (HTS 9820.61.25 for entry specific claims or 9820.61.30 for aggregate claims) eligible to receive duty-free treatment under the Haitian Hemispheric Opportunity Through Partnership for Encouragement Act (HOPE). For the one-year period beginning on Dec. 20, 2017, and extending through Dec. 19, 2018, the recalculated quantity of imports eligible for preferential treatment under the value-added TPL is 361,603,399 square meters equivalent (SME), a decrease of more than 24 million SME over 2017 levels. Apparel articles entered in excess of this TPL will be subject to otherwise applicable duty rates.
World Trade Organization members in Buenos Aires this week issued a ministerial decision extending for another two years the moratorium on customs duties on data transmissions, the WTO announced during the 11th Ministerial Conference (MC11) that saw few other concrete decisions. The moratorium will continue until at least the next session of the WTO Work Programme on Electronic Commerce, in 2019, the decision says. Additionally, 43 WTO members announced they will initiate “exploratory work” toward more substantive future e-commerce negotiations. The group will hold its first meeting in the first quarter of 2018. Participation in the talks will be open to all WTO members “without prejudice to participants’ positions on future negotiations,” the statement says. “We recognize the particular opportunities and challenges faced by developing countries, especially [least developed countries], as well as by micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, in relation to electronic commerce.”
In recent editions of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted:
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of Dec. 4-10:
CBP's deployment and full use of ACE capabilities offers the biggest chance to lessen regulation and related costs, Boeing and others said in comments to CBP. The comments came in response to a CBP solicitation for input on regulations seen as deserving elimination or changes (see 1709110004). "We believe that moving to a fully paperless environment and ensuring maximum utilization of the ACE Portal will be the one achievement that will have the most significant positive effect on streamlining and reducing regulations, and for that reason it should be the priority focus of a regulatory review," Boeing said.
ATLANTA -- The next several years represent an opportunity for CBP and the trade community to begin work on “Mod Act 2.0” legislation to set the stage for modernized customs processes over the next few decades, said Cynthia Whittenburg, deputy assistant commissioner in CBP’s Office of International Trade, at the East Coast Trade Symposium on Dec. 5. After 24 years under the original Customs Modernization Act of 1993, “we find ourselves once again inhibited by our current legislation and regulations,” she said. Judging by that law, which took five to seven years until final passage, the process could be a lengthy one, she said.
ATLANTA -- Customs proposals put forth by Mexico during the NAFTA renegotiation include language covering joint cargo processing along the U.S.’s southern border and manifest harmonization, Jose Garcia, representative for taxation and customs affairs at the Mexican Embassy in Washington, said Dec. 5, during the CBP East Coast Trade Symposium. “These are new ideas Mexico has put on the table,” Garcia said.