CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
Licensed Customs Broker
Customs brokers are entities who assist importers in meeting federal requirements governing imports into the United States. Brokers can be private individuals, partnerships, associations or corporations licensed, regulated and empowered by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Customs brokers oversee transactions related to customs entry and admissibility of merchandise, product classification, customs valuation, payment of duties, taxes, or other charges such as refunds, rebates, and duty drawbacks. To obtain a customs broker license, an individual must pass the U.S. Customs Broker License Exam. Customs brokers are not government employees and should not be confused with CBP officials. There are approximately 11,000 active licensed customs brokers in the United States.
CBP is postponing the customs broker license exam that had been scheduled for April 1, it said in a CSMS message. CBP made the decision “due to the unprecedented situation related to coronavirus (COVID-19) across the country, and the closure of our testing centers,” it said. “CBP will provide additional information in the coming days, so please check cbp.gov website for updates. For immediate concerns regarding the broker exam, you may email Broker Management Branch at brokermanagement@cbp.dhs.gov,” the agency said.
Nuvocargo, a startup freight forwarder and customs brokerage, acquired Atlanta brokerage Oncarriage, the company said in a news release. Nuvocargo, which launched publicly on March 12, described itself as “the first digital freight forwarder and customs broker for U.S./Mexico trade.” The purchase allowed Nuvocargo to enter the market faster than expected, it said. Oncarriage is “a traditional freight forwarder and customs broker that already held key government licenses in USA that Nuvocargo required -- including one that normally takes up to three years to obtain,” Nuvocargo said. The acquisition allows Nuvocargo “to save years of regulatory hurdles to launch and begin serving shippers,” it said.
CBP and the trade community again face difficult decisions on how to move forward with mandatory continuing education for customs brokers. The toughest may be how to create a fair accreditation scheme, but that’s just one of many open questions as a joint task force again attempts to find some resolution of issues that caused continuing education to fall off CBP’s agenda nearly a half-decade ago.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Dec. 23-27 in case they were missed.
CBP scheduled its semiannual customs broker license exams for Wednesday, April 1, and Thursday, Oct. 8, 2020, the agency said in a notice. The exams are typically given on the fourth Wednesday in April and in October. “Due to the limited availability of testing sites and to ensure the integrity of exam conditions by preventing commingling of the administration of the broker exams with other types of exams, CBP has decided to change the regularly scheduled dates of the examination,” the agency said.
The Food and Drug Administration is proposing new regulations that would allow importation of prescription drugs from Canada. Under the proposal, FDA would approve “Section 804 Importation Programs” (SIPs) sponsored by a state, tribal or territorial governmental entity. The registered wholesaler or pharmacy identified by the SIP as the importer could then import the specified drug from an FDA-registered, Health Canada-licensed wholesaler that buys the drug directly from its manufacturer. The proposed rule is set for publication in the Dec. 23 Federal Register, and comments are due March 9.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Nov. 4-8 in case they were missed.
The Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) for CBP will next meet Dec. 4, beginning at 1 p.m., in Washington, CBP said in a notice.