The Government of Canada issued the following trade-related notices for Dec 19-20, 2011 (note that some will also be given separate headlines):
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.
Officials at the International Trade Commission state that the Proclamation to amend the Harmonized Tariff Schedule to implement hundreds of WCO-recommended tariff changes is "at the White House" and is expected to be signed by the President by the end of the year. Once it is signed, it will be published in the Federal Register and take effect 30 days after its Federal Register publication, which would likely be in the late January 2012 timeframe.
The International Trade Commission has updated its online 2011 Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS Revision 1) to reflect Proclamation 8742’s changes for special upland cotton import quotas. The ITC had previously updated the online 2011 HTS to reflect Proclamation 8472’s changes for textile-bottomed footwear and Chile FTA origin rule changes.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has updated its Customs and Trade Automated Interface Requirements (CATAIR) for entry summary and related information filed through the Automated Commercial System (ACS) in order to add a new Appendix U on PGA Manifest Hold Status Messages, among other changes.
The International Trade Administration has issued an amended final determination and antidumping duty order on multilayered wood flooring from China (A-570-970), which among other things amends the rates for 90 respondents. The order also details a "gap period" of November 23 - December 6 of no AD duty liability due to the expiration of the provisional measures period. This order is effective December 7, 2011, and is expected to be implemented by U.S. Customs and Border Protection soon.
The International Trade Administration has issued a countervailing duty order on multilayered wood flooring from China (C-570-971). The order reflects a "gap period" of August 4 - December 6, 2011 of no CV duty liabilty due to the expiration of the provisional measures period. This order is effective December 7, 2011, and is expected to be implemented by U.S. Customs and Border Protection soon.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection is requesting comments by February 3, 2012 on an existing information collection on the Dominican Republic-Central America-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA) import, export, and post-import requirements. CBP is proposing to extend the expiration date of this information collection with no change to the burden hours or to the information collected.
The International Trade Commission has updated its online 2011 Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS Revision 1) to reflect Proclamation 8742’s changes that modify HTS Chapter 64 for certain rubber- or plastic-soled footwear to which a layer of textile materials has been added (textile-bottomed footwear) and make certain rule of origin changes for various Chile free trade agreement (FTA) products. Proclamation 8742’s changes for special upland cotton import quotas are expected to be added to the online HTS soon.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued a CSMS message announcing the issuance of Harmonized System Update 1107. This update contains 28,916 Automated Broker Interface records and 4,758 harmonized tariff records.
In May 2011, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative updated its guidebook on the U.S. Generalized System of Preferences to facilitate public understanding of the GSP program. Among other topics, the guidebook provides information on articles eligible for duty-free treatment, articles prohibited from receiving such treatment, Competitive Need Limitations, and reimbursement for tariffs after retroactive renewal of the program.