Licensed Customs Broker

The regulatory and legal aspects of CBP's blockchain efforts will likely "ramp up" if the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee recommends moving forward based on the results of the proof of concept testing, said Vincent Annunziato, director of CBP’s Business Transformation and Innovation Division (BTID). At that point, the Office of Regulations and Rulings would have to get involved by reviewing requirements that weren't necessary during the test, which simulated the NAFTA and CAFTA certificates of origin process, he said during a recent interview.

CBP plans to revoke hundreds of customs broker's licenses by operation of law, without prejudice, for failure to file the 2018 triennial status report and applicable fee, it said in a notice. CBP’s list includes the broker name (individual or company), license number, and port name associated with the licenses being revoked.

The following customs broker's license and all associated permits are revoked for failure to "employ at least one qualifying individual," CBP said in a notice.

The Scarbrough Group, which includes customs brokerage Scarbrough International, named Adam Hill president and chief operating officer, it said in a press release. Hill, a licensed customs broker, began at the company in 2006 as an import operations account representative

CBP's Office of Trade will be examining the effects of the recent partial federal government shutdown and what needs to be prioritized now that government operations are being funded again, an agency spokesman said. "Approximately 95% of the Office of Trade’s staff were furloughed and not working during the shutdown," he said. The agency "will be spending much of the next few weeks assessing program-by-program impact, and determining what, if any, delays in policy implementation there will be (including to new [Form] 5106 deployment)," the spokesman said. "As we undertake these assessments, we will be communicating with trade stakeholders to apprise them of impact, anticipated adjustments to schedule, etc."

A federal court in California on Jan. 25 denied an e-commerce fulfillment company’s bid for victory in a lawsuit alleging it violated BMW’s trademarks by importing counterfeit goods. More information is needed to determine whether Win.It America can be held liable for counterfeiting as an importer, or if it isn’t responsible because it merely facilitated sales and placed shipping labels on the alleged counterfeit products, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California said in its ruling.

CBP is now accepting claims for drawback on Section 301 duties on products from China, said John Leonard, executive director-trade policy and programs, on a conference call held Jan. 23 to discuss issues related to the ongoing federal government shutdown. The agency has fixed a bug in ACE that was preventing Section 301 drawback claims and is now able to begin processing, though the agency’s ability to resolve particular issues will be limited due to staffing issues caused by the ongoing shutdown, he said.

CBP plans to make use of the new entry type meant for low-value shipments as part of the next blockchain "use case" involving intellectual property rights licensing, said Vincent Annunziato, director of CBP’s Business Transformation and Innovation Division. "We figured out a way to make it so we're tying in the data that we're getting off the licensing to the entry," he said of the test while speaking on a panel during the stakeholder's forum of the U.S.-Canada Regulatory Cooperation Council on Dec. 5. "And we're using that new type 86 that hasn't come out yet so a lot of the companies will get a chance to experiment." The new type 86 entry is planned as a way to handle de minimis shipments in the Automated Broker Interface, with a pilot program expected during calendar year 2019 (see 1810200002).

CBP posted an updated version of its Frequently Asked Questions for Importer Security Filing with information from the agency's ISF changes that took effect May 14 (see 1804110010). Among other things, the FAQs now include a section on ISF-5 filings. CBP's final rule expanded the definition of "importer" for foreign cargo remaining on board (FROB). "For FROB cargo, the ISF Importer is the carrier or the [non-vessel operating common carrier (NVOCC)]; for [Immediate Exportation (IE) or Transportation and Exportation (T&E)] in-bond shipments, and goods to be delivered to [a Foreign-Trade Zone], the definition of ISF Importer includes the goods’ owner, purchaser, consignee, or agent such as a licensed customs broker," CBP said.

The Port of New York/Newark issued a Nov. 9 notice on the importance of validating powers of attorney "prior to transacting Customs business on behalf of the principal." Ensuring the validity of each POA allows brokers to join CBP "on the national security frontlines in verifying the data used to screen what enters this country," Port Director Adele Fasano said. "In addition to security, the broker's own professional business interest and continuing obligation to demonstrate 'reasonable care' require verification of the POA grantor's identity and legal authority (position in a company or partnership) to enter into a POA. CBP has successfully pursued administrative penalties as well as criminal prosecution against brokers who fail to obtain valid POAs."