CBP Tells Traders How to Work Around Small Errors Included in Rush to USMCA

Because the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative was in such a hurry on implementation, some USMCA details needed by traders are either wrong or missing. For instance, there are tariff numbers that are invalid, because negotiators used the 2012 Harmonized Tariff Schedule numbers. On a call with trade professionals July 6, CBP staffers said importers or exporters can email CBP with a tariff number in question, and the agency can provide guidance on how to claim USMCA treatment for those goods.

Another area in which the rush job is causing confusion is the tariff preference level quotas for apparel exported to Canada or Mexico. There's a chart in the implementing instructions that CBP officials realized is wrong, but there was no time to fix it before publication. So those relying on TPLs should read the notes, not the chart, officials said.

An importer on the call asked about restrictions on drawback and duty-deferral programs in USMCA, because the draft implementing instructions left that area as “details to come.” He asked when that might be filled in. CBP said it couldn't say. Then he asked if he can continue to follow NAFTA rules on drawback in the meantime. He cannot, came the answer (see 2007010076).

CBP also does not yet have an answer on whether there will be any duty benefit for importers of used cars from Canada or Mexico. If the used car or truck coming from Canada was originally assembled in the U.S., a CBP official said, it's possible the importer could follow “U.S. goods returned” procedures, but that comes with its own set of requirements, she noted. The agency is working to find a solution to this issue.

Some questions were about the fact that there is no longer a standard form for certificates of origin (COO). There's a lot of confusion about who has to produce origin information to CBP, and when. Officials noted again that if you don't know if you meet a product's rules of origin at the time of entry, even though you aren't required to prove it at the time of entry, you cannot claim the duty benefit. They also noted that if your good is not exported to the U.S., but is later imported as part of a finished good, you need to work with your customer about the information they're asking, as CBP has no involvement in that.

CBP officials reassured a questioner that if the form they have created has more information than the nine data fields the CBP requires -- for instance, that the good has a Mexico country of origin -- that's fine.

The agency also clarified what it needs when it says it wants to see the title of the person signing a COO. Writing “clerk” or “technical assistant” is not allowed, because the signer has to be someone high up enough in the company that he or she has seen the proof that the product meets the rule of origin, whether that's because of the source of components, or both sourcing and the rules on wages, in the case of the auto sector.