The Foreign Agricultural Service will charge a fee of $300 for the 2020 tariff-rate quota (TRQ) year for each license issued to a person or firm by the U.S. Department of Agriculture authorizing the importation of certain dairy articles that are subject to tariff-rate quotas set forth in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, it said. The new fee is the same as last year's for 2019 TRQ licenses.
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 Commerce Department issued Federal Register notices on its recently initiated antidumping duty investigations on utility scale wind towers from Canada, Indonesia, South Korea and Vietnam (A-122-867, A-560-833, A-580-902, A-552-825), as well as its new countervailing duty investigations on utility scale wind towers from Canada, Indonesia and Vietnam (A-122-868, A-560-834, A-552-825).
CBP correctly applied two Section 301 tariff rates to imported toolsets from China, CBP said in a July 30 ruling. Stanley Black & Decker, through its lawyer at Follick & Bessich, requested reconsideration of an April ruling that found that a tool set imported by the Apex Tool Group could be subject to multiple tariffs (see 1904240014). The same issue seems to be under review at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative after a lawmaker mentioned potential broader impact if the fourth tranche of tariffs takes effect and asked whether the USTR considered CBP's interpretation to be correct (see 1907310052).
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is publishing its first list of product exclusions from the third tranche of $200 billion in Section 301 tariffs on China (see 1908050002). This list of exclusions includes 10 subsets of tariff numbers in chapters 39, 54, 56, 73, 87 and 89. The new exclusions take effect retroactively from Sept. 24, 2018, when the $200 billion in tariffs originally entered into force, and will remain for one year following publication of USTR’s notice. USTR is creating Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading 9903.88.13 for the new set of exclusions.
CBP added the ability in ACE for importers to file entries with the first group of excluded goods from the second tranche of Section 301 tariffs on Aug. 1, it said in a CSMS message. Filers of imported products that were granted an exclusion (see 1907290023) should report the regular Chapters 39, 84, 85, 86, 87 and 90 Harmonized Tariff Schedule number, as well as subheading 9903.88.12, for products subject to Section 301 duties on products from China but that have been granted an exclusion by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. “Importers shall not submit the corresponding Chapter 99 HTS number for the Section 301 duties when HTS 9903.88.12 is submitted,” CBP said.
President Donald Trump, angry that China neither stopped the flow of fentanyl nor returned to buying U.S. soybeans, announced on Twitter Aug. 1 that tariffs on nearly 3,800 8-digit tariff lines will begin Sept. 1. Just like with List 3, the tariffs will start at 10 percent.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is publishing its first list of product exclusions from the second tranche of $16 billion in Section 301 tariffs on China (see 1808150016). This list of exclusions includes 69 subsets of tariff numbers in chapters 39, 84, 85, 86, 87 and 90. The new exclusions take effect retroactively from Aug. 23, 2018, when the $16 billion in tariffs originally entered into force, and will remain for one year following publication of USTR’s notice. USTR is creating Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading 9903.88.12 for the new set of exclusions.
CBP created Harmonized System Update (HSU) 1913 on July 21, containing 113 Automated Broker Interface records and 23 Harmonized Tariff Schedule record, it said in a CSMS message. The update includes adjustments required by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative's announcement of new exemptions from Section 301 tariffs on China (see 1907080008). Modifications required by the verification of the 2019 HTS are included as well.
In a notice scheduled to be published July 15 in the Federal Register, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative has allocated the quotas in metric tons of imported cane sugar that can come in below the tariff rate of 15.36 cents per pound for raw sugar and 16.21 cents per pound for refined sugar.
CBP will add the ability in ACE for importers to file entries with the sixth group of exclusions from the first tranche of Section 301 tariffs on July 11, it said in a CSMS message. Filers of imported products that were granted an exclusion (see 1907080023) should report the regular Chapter 84, 85 or 90 Harmonized Tariff Schedule number, as well as subheading 9903.88.11, for products subject to Section 301 duties on products from China but that have been granted an exclusion by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. “Importers shall not submit the corresponding Chapter 99 HTS number for the Section 301 duties when HTS 9903.88.11 is submitted,” CBP said.