Importers may need to up their customs bond amounts after the Section 301 25 percent tariffs take effect on goods from China, said Laura Siegel Rabinowitz, special counsel at Kelley Drye, in a June 28 blog post. "While bonds are based on imports for the previous twelve months, the time period is rolling and we expect CBP to be aggressively reviewing imports from China beginning on July 6," she said. Rabinowitz said that after "the Section 232 duties on imported steel and aluminum went into effect recently, CBP sent letters to certain importers giving them thirty days to increase their bonds to be commensurate with the new tariffs."
Customs Duty
A Customs Duty is a tariff or tax which a country imposes on goods when they are transported across international borders. Customs Duties are used to protect countries' economies, residents, jobs, and environments, by limiting the flow of imported merchandise, especially restricted and prohibited goods, into the country. The Customs Duty Rate is a percentage determined by the value of the article purchased in the foreign country and not based on quality, size, or weight.
More than 2,000 people and organizations submitted comments on the idea of implementing higher tariffs on imported cars and car parts, with the overwhelming majority rejecting the idea. The National Association of Manufacturers noted that U.S. automotive exports increased eight-old from 1980 to 2017, and that imported parts are vital to automotive manufacturing's price competitiveness.
The International Trade Commission posted Revision 6 to the 2018 Harmonized Tariff Schedule. The semiannual update to the HTS implements the third round of tariff cuts under the expanded World Trade Organization Information Technology Agreement, and adds new tariff numbers for a variety of products, including organic fruits and vegetables, lighted mirrors and molded or pressed paper plates. The ITC is also adding new tariff provisions that appear to cover products subject to antidumping and countervailing duty orders on solar cells and products from China and Taiwan, and reorganizing tariff classification provisions for archaeological and ethnographic objects. All changes take effect July 1, unless otherwise specified.
The government of Canada recently issued the following trade-related notices as of June 29 (some may also be given separate headlines):
The Department of Justice and Temple St. Clair reached a $796,000 settlement to resolve allegations of civil fraud, the DOJ said in a news release. Temple St. Clair, "a fine jewelry designer, manufacturer, and importer based in New York, New York," was alleged to have undervalued its goods at import, the DOJ said. The company's senior leadership also allegedly carried jewelry, including a pendant valued at $83,000, into the U.S. for commercial purposes without declaration, the DOJ said. The lawsuit was initiated by a whistleblower under the False Claims Act, it said.
CBP is investigating a California company for alleged antidumping duty evasion on aluminum extrusions from China, the agency said in a May 17 notice. The investigation stems from allegations filed under the Enforce and Protect Act (EAPA) by Endura Products, a domestic producer of fabricated extruded aluminum door thresholds, CBP said. The company alleged that Columbia Aluminum Products evaded antiumping duties by misclassifying door thresholds.
The World Customs Organization and the United Nations' International Trade Centre developed a new online tool meant to help smaller companies benefit from lower duties in free trade agreements, the ITC said in a news release. The Rules of Origin Facilitator will "increase transparency and knowledge in trade and make the subject of rules of origin more easily accessible for customs officers, companies, trade policymakers, and trade institutions," WCO Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya said.
In recent editions of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted:
The government of Canada recently issued the following trade-related notices as of June 27 (some may also be given separate headlines):
Participation within the European Union's Authorized Economic Operator program could be one way to reduce barriers for trade between Ireland and the United Kingdom following Brexit, KPMG said on its website. "As the Brexit process continues, Irish businesses need to prepare for the changes in trading into and out of the UK once the UK finally leaves the EU," said Glenn Reynolds, a partner with KPMG in Ireland. "If the UK leaves the EU Single Market and Customs Union with no other arrangements in place, all trade between Ireland and the UK will require full customs clearance and tariffs would be imposed on Irish exports to the UK and imports from the UK into Ireland."