CBP has no plans to change policy regarding post-entry free trade agreement (FTAs) preference claims filed before liquidation, despite some industry speculation otherwise, said the CBP Office of International Trade. A recent publication from law firm Drinker Biddle said CBP headquarters is in the process of changing policy to discontinue the use of some post-import preference claims. According to Drinker Biddle lawyers James Sawyer and Beata Spuhler (here), CBP "has indicated that the ability to file Protests, and potentially [Post Entry Amendments (PEAs)], in order to claim eligibility under certain Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) may be prohibited due to a policy change within the agency."
Send event information for inclusion in the International Trade Today Calendar toITTNews@warren-news.com.
CBP posted the slides from a July 22 presentation on Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) and the electronic data interchange (EDI). The presentation includes slides on "Steps for First Time EDI Filers" and "Transitioning to ACE ABI from Legacy Systems."
In the July 23 issue of the CBP Customs Bulletin (Vol. 48, No. 29), CBP published notices that propose to modify or revoke rulings and similar treatment for the tariff classification of rubber boots and aquatic training shoes.
CBP will extend its Air Cargo Advance Screening (ACAS) pilot, which allows for early filing of cargo data, for another year through July 26, 2015, the agency said. The extension will allow "CBP to continue to strengthen its capability to target high-risk cargo earlier in the supply chain and provide greater opportunity for additional members of the air cargo community to participate and prepare for possible proposed regulatory changes." CBP has extended the pilot several times, most recently in October (see 13102226). The Airforwarders Association recently voiced some concerns over a lack of input from smaller businesses regarding ACAS before CBP publishes rules for the program (see 14060522) "There are current participants that are in the process of testing and development that still need time to become fully operational participants and there continue to be members of the air cargo community who have informed CBP that they are interested in participating in the pilot," the notice said. CBP will also reopen the pilot, with new applications due Sept. 26.
A class 9 bonded warehouse operator may sell merchandise for domestic use in addition to duty-free goods, said CBP in a May 15 internal advice ruling, HQ H161256. The ruling comes in response to a request from the operator to the Port of New York/Newark that was passed up to headquarters. The internal advice request was submitted to CBP headquarters in 2011, the ruling said. Due "to changes in business conditions" the operator was considering selling merchandise to customers domestically in addition to duty-free merchandise and asked for agency input, said CBP.
A Turkish man pleaded guilty on July 22 to smuggling "counterfeit, misbranded and adulterated cancer treatment drugs into the United States," said the Justice Department in a news release. Ozkan Semizoglu admitted in a plea agreement to using "shipping labels that concealed the illegal nature of the prescription drug shipments, including customs declarations falsely describing the contents as 'gifts' or 'documents' or 'product sample' with no or low declared monetary values," said DOJ. The shipments were sent from Turkey to Chesterfield, Missouri.
CBP issued its July 23 Customs Bulletin (Vol. 48, No. 29), which contains the following ruling actions:
The Small Business Administration's Office of the National Ombudsman will hold a regulatory fairness hearing on the Food and Drug Administration's implementation of the Food Safety and Modernization Act (FSMA), said the SBA. The hearing is scheduled for July 31 in Cupertino, Calif. from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., it said. The hearing is expected to include testimony from "small food and grocery manufacturers, food importers and customs brokers" on "compliance issues related to recent regulations" issued as part of FSMA, the SBA said. "Issues reported by participants undergo a high-level fairness review at the appropriate federal agency, and the Office of the National Ombudsman works with its federal agency partners to address those concerns, reduce regulatory burdens, and help small businesses grow."
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related issues: