Brokers and entry filers at the Port of Champlain have been wrongly filing informal entries for U.S. Goods Returned (USGR) that should be entered formally, according to a Sept. 16 notice sent out by the port’s CBP entry division. CBP Champlain told brokers and entry filers that they should take immediate action to ensure that they are in compliance with 19 CFR 143.21. Future violations could result in broker penalties under 19 USC 1641 for failure to exercise reasonable supervision and control, it said.
Harmonized Tariff Schedule
The Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) is a reference manual that provides duty rates for almost every item that exists. It is a system of classifying and taxing all goods imported into the United States. The HTS is based on the international Harmonized System, which is a global standard for naming and describing trade products, and consists of a hierarchical structure that assigns a specific code and rate to each type of merchandise for duty, quota, and statistical purposes. The HTS was made effective on January 1, 1989, replacing the former Tariff Schedules of the United States. It is maintained by the U.S. International Trade Commission, but the Customs and Border Protection of the Department of Homeland Security is responsible for interpreting and enforcing the HTS.
The U.S. affiliate of a Japanese company requested on Sept. 16 new antidumping and countervailing duties on monosodium glutamate (MSG) from China and Indonesia. Ajinomoto North America (AJINA), whose parent company in Japan was the first company in the world to market MSG in 1909, alleges that low-priced and unfair competition in China and Indonesia is rapidly gaining U.S. market share and causing lost revenues and profits. MSG is a food additive that is mainly used to enhance flavors (the Japanese name Ajinomoto translates to “essence of taste” in English). Some MSG is also used as a biodegradable “builder” ingredient in detergents like laundry and dish soap, the petition said. Ajinomoto has a factory in Iowa and is the only domestic producer of the product, it said.
The U. S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed on Sept. 16 a lower court decision that found Del Monte’s tuna product, packed in small amounts of oil, should nonetheless be classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule as having been packed “in oil.” The Court of International Trade had in October said the amount of oil was irrelevant for classification purposes, because neither the HTS nor prior court rulings set a minimum threshold for what it means to be packed “in oil” (see 12101601). CAFC agreed, finding it unnecessary to look beyond the terms of the tariff schedule. The Appeals Court also upheld CIT’s ruling on valuation “formulas.”
A domestic coalition of steel companies on Sept. 4 requested new antidumping and countervailing duties on steel concrete reinforcing bar (commonly known as rebar) from Turkey (A-489-818/C-489-819), and antidumping duties on rebar from Mexico (A-201-844). Rebar is used in the construction industry to reinforce concrete structures. The Rebar Trade Action Coalition, which includes domestic manufacturers Byer Steel Corporation; Cascade Steel Rolling Mills, Inc.; Commercial Metals Company; Gerdau Ameristeel US Inc.; and Nucor Corporation, alleged that producers in Mexico and Turkey are underselling rebar in the U.S., and producers in Turkey are also benefiting from illegal subsidization. Their low priced imports are taking market share from U.S. producers, forcing down prices, and causing material injury to U.S. producers, the petitioners alleged.
Two U.S. manufacturers asked for antidumping duties against chlorinated isocyanurates from Japan, and countervailing duties on chlorinated isocyanurates from China, in petitions filed Aug. 29 with the Commerce Department and International Trade Commission. Clearon Corp. and Occidental Chemical said dumped and illegally-subsidized imports of the pool cleaning chemical from the two countries are undercutting their prices and hurting industry profits. CV duties against Chinese imports would come on top of an existing AD duty order issued in 2005.
CBP said its Harmonized System Update (HSU) 1304 was created Aug. 26, containing 4,478 ABI records and 24,686 harmonized tariff records. The update contains modifications made as a result of the Cotton Board Rules and Regulations: Adjusting Supplemental Assessment on Imports (see 13070115). Adjustments required by the verification of the 2013 Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) are also included, CBP said in a CSMS message. The modified records can be retrieved electronically via the procedures indicated in the CATAIR. Further information: Jennifer Keeling, Jennifer.Keeling@dhs.gov.
The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements added certain polyester/nylon cut corduroy fabric to the list of items not available in commercial quantities in a timely manner under Annex 3.25 of the Dominican Republic-Central America-U.S. Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act (CAFTA-DR). The fabric, which is classified in subheading 5801.32 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, was added in unrestricted quantities. Effective Aug. 27, this corduroy fabric may be sourced from outside the DR-CAFTA member countries without affecting eligibility for DR-CAFTA treatment.
CBP will begin enforcing entry requirements on container residue on Nov. 25, and is launching a pilot on the same date that will allow for simplified “residue entries,” it said in a notice set for publication in the Aug. 27 Federal Register. To qualify for residue entry, the residue must fall under thresholds for weight or volume, and must not have any commercial value. Residue entries will be released under modified procedures for low value shipments. Participation in the pilot is not required. All may participate in the pilot and file residue entries, and those that don’t will have to enter container residue under normal entry procedures.
Chipboard letters with printed designs for use in scrapbooks are correctly classified as their constituent material paperboard, and not as printed designs on paperboard, said CBP as it affirmed an earlier tariff classification ruling. The shape of the letters is the most important aspect of the product, and not the printed designs, CBP said.
The Court of International Trade ruled Aug. 16 that Springs Creative Product Group’s (SCPG) “Make-it-Yourself No-Sew Fleece Throw Kits” are properly classified as toys in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, and not as its constituent fabric as CBP had argued. The throw kits are mainly intended for fun, and their eventual use as blankets is secondary, the court said. Significantly, the throw kits sell for a substantial price premium over finished throws.