The Court of International Trade in a July 20 opinion redenominated the U.S.'s counterclaim in a customs case brought by importer Cyber Power Systems as a defense, ruling that the U.S. does not have the statutory authority to make the counterclaim. With the ruling, Judge Claire Kelly denied Cyber Power's motion to dismiss the counterclaim as moot. Kelly ruled that none of the sections in the U.S. code cited by the U.S. give a basis for the counterclaim, which sought to reclassify imported cables.
Harmonized Tariff Schedule
The Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) is a reference manual that provides duty rates for almost every item that exists. It is a system of classifying and taxing all goods imported into the United States. The HTS is based on the international Harmonized System, which is a global standard for naming and describing trade products, and consists of a hierarchical structure that assigns a specific code and rate to each type of merchandise for duty, quota, and statistical purposes. The HTS was made effective on January 1, 1989, replacing the former Tariff Schedules of the United States. It is maintained by the U.S. International Trade Commission, but the Customs and Border Protection of the Department of Homeland Security is responsible for interpreting and enforcing the HTS.
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of July 11-17:
CBP created Harmonized System Update (HSU) 2217 on July 14, containing 61 Automated Broker Interface records and 12 Harmonized Tariff Schedule records, it said in a CSMS message. The update "separates organic and non-organic peppers changes for the July 1, 2022 484(f) Midyear updates," CBP said.
Importer and U.S. subsidiary of a Chinese manufacturing company, Wanxiang America Corp. is guilty of negligence by making false statements and omissions over its entries of wheel hub assemblies, radial ball and tapered roller bearings, and universal joints and their parts, the U.S. argued in a July 13 complaint at the Court of International Trade. Through its negligence, Wanxiang America avoided antidumping duties and customs duties on its entries, cheating the U.S. out of over $31 million in lost revenue, the U.S. said. DOJ filed its case to seek the lost duty payments along with a penalty (United States v. Wanxiang America Corporation, CIT #22-00205).
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of July 5-10:
CBP created Harmonized System Update (HSU) 2216 on July 11, containing 40 Automated Broker Interface records and 8 Harmonized Tariff Schedule records, it said in a CSMS message. The update includes changes to tariff rates on goods from Russia, CBP said.
The Court of International in a July 7 opinion upheld CBP's decision to deny Shuzhen Zhong a customs broker's license. Zhong, appearing pro se and seeking to get to a passing grade of 75% or higher on a customs broker license exam, appealed the answers to two questions. Judge Jane Restani ruled that CBP's decision to deny credit for both questions was backed by substantial evidence.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The International Trade Commission posted Revision 6 to the 2022 Harmonized Tariff Schedule. The semiannual update to the HTS adds new 10-digit tariff numbers for a variety of products, including tomatoes and a wide range of other vegetables, cut flowers and beverages in aluminum cans. All changes take effect July 1, unless otherwise specified.
CBP created Harmonized System Update (HSU) 2215 on June 19, containing 1,018 Automated Broker Interface records and 182 Harmonized Tariff Schedule records, it said in a CSMS message. The update includes changes for the July 1, 2022, interagency 484(f) Committee midyear updates. CBP said.