CBP provided a list of processes that are currently or will be eventually handled by Centers of Excellence and Expertise (CEEs) during a May 28 Webinar. CBP has opened seven CEEs so far. CBP has been providing some outreach on how customs brokers will be involved.
Drawback
A duty drawback is a refund by CBP of the duties, taxes, or fees paid on imported goods, which were imposed upon importation as prescribed in 19 U.S.C. 1313(d). More broadly, a drawback also includes the refund or remission of other excise taxes pursuant to other provisions of law.
CBP clarified recent policy changes for amending waiver for prior notice (see 13040819) in a CSMS message. Approved waivers covering a specific type of 1313(j) drawback may be amended to include goods covered by another 1313(j) drawback type, as long as the exports are still within the allowable statutory timeframe, the agency said. The existing approval will be "updated to include the additional 1313(j) type and will apply to drawback claims that meet the statutory timeframes.," it said.
The Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General issued a report containing an independent audit conducted by KPMG LLP that provides observations and recommendations related to CBP's information technology management for FY 2012. The audit showed "a significant deficiency in the areas of Information Technology (IT) security management, access controls, configuration management, segregation of duties, contingency planning, and application controls," said KPMG.
CBP listed changes to the Electronic Invoice Program (EIP)/Remote Location Filing (RLF) hybrid ineligible forms list (dated June 2011). CBP said in a CSMS message the following forms have been removed from the ineligible forms list and are eligible to be submitted to CBP via the EIP/RLF hybrid process:
CBP is beginning work on implementation of online bulletin notices of liquidation, and the elimination of posting at the customhouse, the agency said. The move is long-overdue and would make keeping up with liquidation easier for importers and service providers, said industry lawyers. The idea, which was suggested by a CBP Branch Chief, was one of four finalists for the government’s Securing Americans Value and Efficiency (SAVE) award. CBP has formed an implementation team that includes the official that came forward with the idea, said an agency spokeswoman.
The U.S. trade deficit with goods to China fell by $5.5 billion in March, reflecting a drop in all top categories of U.S. imports from China, according to recent data from the U.S. China Economic and Security Review Commission. March exports to China were 4 percent lower than one year ago, while imports declined 13 percent from last year, the Commission said in its monthly review of U.S.-China trade data. The steepest import declines were in miscellaneous manufactured commodities, and computer and electronic products. On the export side, agricultural products and chemicals declined, the former by more than 34 percent compared to March 2012. Exports in transportation equipment, machinery and computer and electronic products all increased from last year.
The CBP April 10 Bulletin (Vol. 47, No. 16) proposes to revoke its treatment of whether hydrating and pitting prunes counts as a manufacture for drawback purposes. CBP previously considered that process to be a manufacture, but recently said otherwise in a response to an internal advice request from Sunsweet Growers. Sunsweet Growers imports prunes, which, upon importation, are steamed or cooked to be hydrated and then pitted and placed under a laser scanner that detects pit fragments, it said. The prunes maintain the same nutritional content following the hydration and pitting, the company said.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for April 8-12 in case they were missed.
CBP issued its April 10 Customs Bulletin (Vol. 47, No. 16), which contains notices of the following ruling action:
The American Association of Exporters and Importers (AAEI) joined the chorus of customs groups asking for removal of AD/CVD section from the still-under-discussion House customs reauthorization bill, saying the section should be removed “so it does not slow down passage of this important legislation.”