A three-judge panel at the Court of International Trade will hear a recently filed Section 232 challenge that opens a new front in the battle of steel importers against the tariffs. Maple Leaf Marketing (MLM), distributor of oil industry pipe that is exported from the U.S. to Canada for processing before being re-imported in improved form, says that CBP in April illegally expanded Section 232 tariffs to cover U.S. goods returned under subheading 9802.00.0050 (see 2004130056).
Brian Feito
Brian Feito is Managing Editor of International Trade Today, Export Compliance Daily and Trade Law Daily. A licensed customs broker who spent time at the Department of Commerce calculating antidumping and countervailing duties, Brian covers a wide range of subjects including customs and trade-facing product regulation, the courts, antidumping and countervailing duties and Mexico and the European Union. Brian is a graduate of the University of Florida and George Mason University. He joined the staff of Warren Communications News in 2012.
The International Trade Commission posted Revision 14 to the 2020 Harmonized Tariff Schedule. The semiannual update to the HTS implements USMCA, which took effect July 1, and adds new tariff numbers for a variety of products, including diagnostic reagents and personal protective equipment. All changes take effect July 1, unless otherwise specified.
An importer can claim duty-free treatment under a special classification provision for goods returned without having been improved or advanced in value, even though a declaration submitted by the importer in connection with the claim only lists a range of exportation dates, and not the specific date that the goods were originally exported, CBP said in a ruling recently posted to the agency’s CROSS database.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on June 2 affirmed a lower court ruling that found plastic Apple iPad 2 “smart cover” cases are classifiable in the tariff schedule as articles of plastic, not as accessories for automatic data processing machines, despite their additional function as a stand.
The International Trade Commission posted Revision 14 to the 2020 Harmonized Tariff Schedule. The semiannual update to the HTS implements USMCA, which took effect July 1, and adds new tariff numbers for a variety of products, including diagnostic reagents and personal protective equipment. All changes take effect July 1, unless otherwise specified.
CBP is issuing an interim final rule to implement rules of origin provisions for the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement that will take effect July 1. The interim rule creates new Part 182 to the customs regulations for USMCA, and amends existing NAFTA regulations under 19 CFR Part 181 so that they no longer apply to entries on or after July 1. Most of 19 CFR Part 182 is vacant, but CBP says it will fill out the regulations over the coming year. Comments on the interim regulations are due Aug. 31.
President Donald Trump on June 30 released the annexes to Presidential Proclamation 10053, including provisions to implement the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, scheduling it for publication in the July 1 Federal Register. Among the annexes are new General Note 11 to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, which lays out USMCA rules of origin. The proclamation also adds new special program indicators (SPIs) “S” and “S+” throughout the tariff schedule for goods eligible for USMCA treatment. These changes take effect July 1.
FDA continues its enforcement of Foreign Supplier Verification Program requirements, even amid the halt to on-site importer inspections that began in late March as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The agency has conducted more than 290 remote FSVP inspections since the pandemic suppression measures began, and has issued 19 warning letters to FSVP importers found not to be in compliance with FSVP provisions, an FDA spokesperson emailed.
The Commerce Department will reconsider its denial of Section 232 exclusions for an importer of steel pipe, after the Court of International Trade on June 25 granted the government’s request to be allowed to reopen and add to the administrative record Commerce had previously presented the court and revisit its decision.
The Federal Trade Commission will soon issue a proposed rule that would strengthen its authority to impose penalties for “Made in USA” labeling violations and apply those rules to online advertising and marketing materials. Approved in a 4-1 FTC vote June 22, the proposal mostly codifies current guidance into new Made in USA regulations, though its broader definition of “label” sparked the lone “no” vote among the FTC commissioners and a partial dissent from another.