CBP issued a ruling that found a company acted as a buying agent on a transaction, despite being listed as a buyer on shipping documentation. The agency said it would grant a protest from Tianjin Leviathan Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Leviathan Corporation, that found the buying commissions it earned should be deducted from the valuation of merchandise that was actually bought by its parent.
The National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America said the FDA needs to address a few remaining issues in its recently issued guidance document on upcoming cosmetics registration and product listing requirements.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
Many goods denied entry into the U.S. under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act are not actually goods made with forced labor, but that doesn't stop UFLPA-detained goods from being stigmatized as such, said John Foote of Kelley Drye in a Jan. 19 blog post.
More than 80% of cargo is now moving around the Cape of Good Hope due to Houthi rebel attacks in the Red Sea and low Panama Canal water levels (see 2312200045), Nathan Strang, a director of ocean freight at Flexport, said during a Jan. 18 company webinar.
Dependable Highway Express charged an importer detention and demurrage on behalf of Mediterranean Shipping Co. after the ocean carrier had waived the charge, importer ICL USA said in a complaint to the Federal Maritime Commission. DHE also assessed ICL a 10% surcharge on the fees, in violation of its contractual role as a trucker.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America is asking members to comment on Red Sea shipping experiences ahead of a Federal Maritime Commission meeting on Feb. 7 (see 2401120057). A Jan. 17 email sent by the NCBFAA asked members to share their experiences in the Red Sea and how diversions due to Houthi missile attacks have affected maritime shipping in the region. The association said it plans to compile the responses into an "industry-specific impact statement" that it plans to present at the FMC meeting.
A scheduled FDA upgrade of its import operations database will lead to an outage from 10 p.m. Jan. 20 to 5 a.m. Jan. 21 EST, CBP said Jan. 17. This will affect the Interoperability Web Service (IWS), the FDA Import Trade Auxiliary Communications Systems (ITACS) and prior notice applications, except the Prior Notice System Interface (PNSI), the agency said in a CSMS message.
The FDA posted a document showing the information needed "for successful filing of Electronic Nicotine Delivery System (ENDS) products," CBP said in a CSMS message Jan. 17. The information needs to be provided to the customs broker on the shipment in order to avoid a delay of an FDA admissibility determination, CBP said. "*Please share this resource with your customs broker," the FDA said.