The U.S Trade Representative issued some new product exclusions from Section 301 tariffs on the third list of products from China, granting exemptions for two 10-digit tariff subheadings, according to a pre-publication copy of a notice posted to the agency’s website Nov. 7. The product exclusions apply retroactively to Sept. 24, 2018 the date the tariffs on the third list took effect, and will remain in effect until Aug. 7, 2020. New subheading 9903.88.34 will be used for these products.
Section 301 tariff exclusion extensions
NEW YORK -- Companies hoping to avoid Section 301 tariffs by a shift in origin should research CBP rulings first, United States Fashion Industry Association customs counsel John Pellegrini said. And if the product they are importing is even a little different from what's in a ruling, ask for a new ruling. "It's a time to play conservative," said Pellegrini, who was speaking at the Nov. 7 USFIA Trade and Transportation conference.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Oct. 28 - Nov. 1 in case they were missed.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative estimated it will take staff and contractors about a year to get through 45,000 exclusion requests it expects between new requests for Lists 3 and 4 and requests to extend exclusions granted in December last year. The estimate is part of a notice in the Federal Register published Nov. 1.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative could be even tougher in its review of extension requests for Section 301 tariff exclusions (see 1910280059) than it had been previously, Sidley Austin lawyer Ted Murphy said in a blog post. "Any company that is relying on an approved product exclusion from the first batch of approvals should consider filing comments with the USTR," he said. "We expect that the bar for securing a renewal/extension may well be higher than it was to secure the original approval (i.e., the need to answer the question why you still need the exclusion a year later). Companies relying on other approved product exclusions (those not from the first batch) also should watch this process closely." Although the possibility of exclusions is welcome news, " it also means that the Administration believes that there is at least a meaningful chance that the U.S.-China trade war will carry on and that the Section 301 duties will remain in place well into 2020," he said.
The International Trade Commission has issued Revision 15 to the 2019 Harmonized Tariff Schedule. The only substantive change from the previous HTS edition is the removal of an exemption from solar cells safeguard duties for double-sided solar panels, as announced by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative in early October (see 1910080054).
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is seeking Office of Management and Budget approval to renew its exclusion request form for Section 301 tariffs, USTR said in a notice. The form was previously approved by OMB under an "emergency" review (see 1906170025) and is set to expire at the end of the year, USTR said. The burden estimate for the form was also revised, based on comments received in response to the emergency processing notice, the agency said.
2019 is shaping up to be another active year in terms of changes to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule. Like last year, a series of revisions were necessary in the first half of the year to implement Section 301 exemptions and an increase for $200 billion worth of the China tariffs from 10 percent to 25 percent. Other major changes are related to the Generalized System of Preferences, and in particular the removal of India and Turkey from the program. In all, seven revisions were issued prior to the mid-year Revision 8, as follows:
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative will not automatically renew Section 301 product exclusions, USTR Robert Lighthizer told Rep. Jackie Walorksi during the June 19 House Ways and Means Committee hearing on the administration's trade policy. But Lighthizer told a California Democrat that his office is hiring employers and contractors and borrowing "a bunch of people" from other agencies to work on the flood of product exclusion requests that's expected.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for June 3-7 in case they were missed.