CBP Instructs the Trade on the Textile and Apparel Changes Made by AGOA III
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued two notices regarding the changes made by the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Acceleration Act of 2004 (Public Law (P.L.) 108-274) for textiles and apparel.
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(The AGOA Acceleration Act, often referred to as AGOA III, was signed into law by President Bush on July 13, 2004.)
Claims for New AGOA III Benefits Must Wait for Proclamation and CBP Instructions
CBP states that it will not issue its instructions for claiming new AGOA III benefits for merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after July 13, 2004 until a Presidential Proclamation is issued.
As a result, importers should not make claims for new AGOA III benefits for merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after July 13, 2004 until this proclamation is issued, and instructions have been issued by CBP.
(According to U.S. government sources, the proclamation is expected to implement certain changes to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS), etc., and CBP wants to ensure its instructions match the interpretations in the proclamation.)
Requests for Certain Retroactive AGOA II and III Benefits Can be Filed Now
As filers only have 90 days after July 13, 2004 to file requests for the retroactive AGOA II and AGOA III benefits provided by Section 8 of P.L. 108-274, CBP has issued instructions for such requests in advance of the issuance of the Presidential Proclamation.
(Section 8 of P.L. 108-274 provides for certain retroactive AGOA benefits (e.g. knit-to-shape, etc.) for entries of apparel made on/after October 1, 2000 (the implementation date of AGOA) and before July 13, 2004, that meet the requirements of 19 USC 3721(b), as amended by Section 3108 of the Trade Act of 2002 (i.e., Section 3108 of AGOA II) and AGOA III.)
CBP states that such requests, among other things, must ask for the liquidation or reliquidation of the affected entry(s), and must be received at the CBP port of entry within the 90-day timeframe.
CBP adds that all normal entry document requirements of AGOA must be met at the time a claim is made (e.g., AGOA visa, AGOA certificate of origin, etc.).
According to U.S. government sources, CBP will not be making any final decisions on these requests for retroactive AGOA II and AGOA III benefits until the Presidential Proclamation has been issued.
See TBT-04-022 for CBP's summation of benefits under AGOA II and AGOA III that may be requested retroactively as provided for in Section 8 of P.L. 108-274. See future issue of ITT for additional details of this summation, as well as other details regarding the submission of Section 8 requests for retroactive AGOA II and AGOA III benefits.(See ITT's Online Archives or 07/14/04 news, 04071405, for BP summary of the enactment of AGOA III.)
| Susan Thomas (202) 344-3719 |
| Bob Abels (202) 344-1959 |
CBP notice on retroactive AGOA II and III benefits (TBT-04-022, dated 07/28/04) available at
CBP notice on new claims for AGOA III benefits (TBT-04-024, dated 07/28/04) available at