As customs brokers and importers respond to sudden changes in U.S. trade compliance regulations, the trade will need to come up with new models that can allow companies to be nimble when those changes trickle down to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, trade expert Cindy Allen said recently at the Automotive Industry Action Group's North American Customs and Trade Town Hall on Nov. 6 in Detroit.
The FDA's ability to process imports slowed down this fall, driven by a combination of factors: the government shutdown, the transition from a regional to a national processing program, and increased scrutiny of imported products subject to import alerts, such as products from Indonesia, sources told International Trade Today.
As CBP ramps up enforcement and seeks to ensure that importers' claims of first sale are valid, expect the agency to pay close attention to the documents of the middleman, said tax consultants with KPMG during an Oct. 27 presentation on first sale at the International Compliance Professionals Association's annual conference in Texas.
Increased U.S. scrutiny of Mexican truck drivers' English-speaking proficiency is raising concerns within the drayage industry that drivers who cross the U.S. border and perform drayage within a limited distance from the border will be prevented from doing their jobs.
As companies navigate the increasingly complex U.S. trade landscape, companies should "shift left" and adjust their trade compliance strategies so that potential compliance issues are caught upstream in areas such as sales, procurement and development before hitting the duty filing stage, a software developer said at the International Compliance Professionals Association conference in Grapevine, Texas, on Oct. 27.
While AI technology providers often tout their ability to classify imported goods, AI might be more useful in helping importers and customs brokers document a large amount of entry data, according to Phillip Poland, who was speaking on an Oct. 22 webinar sponsored by the American Association of Exporters and Importers on AI and reasonable care.
As importers find themselves in the cross-hairs of CBP's plans to ramp up trade enforcement, they can no longer rely solely on customs brokers and siloed trade compliance departments because the stakes have become too high, trade attorneys suggested during an Oct. 22 Foley & Lardner webinar.
Companies may need to decide soon whether to file protests as a means of hedging against how the Supreme Court might rule on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act tariffs, Flexport's Marcus Eeman said on an Oct. 22 webinar on recent U.S. tariff actions.
CBP recently issued two rulings on duty-free classification under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule heading 9817, including one that unsuccessfully lobbied for a reconsideration of a previous ruling.
RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. -- As CBP ramps up trade enforcement, companies must not only strive to have their supporting documents in order, they also must scrutinize CBP's enforcement actions to ensure the agency is interpreting matters correctly, trade attorneys said at last week's Western Cargo Conference (WESCCON).