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CBP Planning Pilot to Look at Risk Factors in AD/CV Duty Collections
August 17, 2016 |Customs

CBP is devising a test program for taking into account various factors that could indicate risk of antidumping and countervailing duty non-payment, a CBP spokeswoman said as part of a response to the Government Accountability Office's report on unpaid AD/CV duties (see 1608160032). "The pilot program will include the development of a risk-based methodology pertaining to country of origin and other risk factors to identify high-risk entries," she said. "CBP will use the data and results from the pilot program to implement a targeting approach to review all future entries that could pose a high risk of non-payment." Otherwise, CBP concurred with the three recommendations in the GAO report and "has established a Trade Enforcement Task Force to strengthen the enforcement of antidumping and countervailing duty laws.” CBP also recently formalized an AD/CV Duty Centralization Team (ACT) as a permanent structure, though, "as of May 2016, CBP had not assigned any staff permanently," the GAO report said. "CBP’s guidance also made it mandatory for all ports to work with the ACT, although CBP officials at ports and offices will continue to play the lead role in liquidating AD/CV entries as before. According to the April 2016 guidance, in the event of disagreement between the ACT and officials of one or more ports and offices about how to resolve a liquidation question, the relevant officials at the ports and offices are to contact the appropriate officials within the AD/CV Division of the Office of Trade to arrive at a decision."

CBP Proposes Changes to Vehicle Importing Requirements; Would Allow Use of ACE for EPA Forms
August 16, 2016 |Customs

CBP is considering changes to its regulatory requirements for importing vehicles and engines in order to "harmonize" the forms required by the Environmental Protection Agency, CBP said in a notice (here). "In an effort to provide consistency in the administration of CBP’s vehicle and engine imports program so that importers of both road vehicles and engines, as well as stationary and nonroad engines (including engines incorporated into vehicles or equipment), are subject to the same filing and recordkeeping requirements, CBP is proposing to conform the entry filing requirements applicable to the EPA Declaration Form 3520-21 to those that currently exist for EPA Declaration Form 3520-1," it said. The proposal would require that importers of "stationary, nonroad or heavy-duty highway engines (including engines incorporated into vehicles or equipment) file EPA Declaration Form 3520-21 at the time of entry, unless exempt," it said. Importers with a valid EPA Certificate of Conformity that manufacture nonroad or stationary engines labeled to show compliance with emission standards would be exempt from the form 3520-21 filing requirements, CBP said.

CBP Releases Full Texts of Mutual Recognition Arrangements
August 16, 2016 |Customs

CBP released the full texts of the 11 existing Mutual Recognition Arrangements (MRAs) signed by the U.S. and foreign customs administrators. The texts, which weren't previously made available by CBP, were provided to International Trade Today in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. "After consultation and evaluation of the documents, CBP FOIA has determined that they may be released to you in full, with no redactions," CBP's FOIA Division Branch Chief Patrick Howard said in a letter. "A copy of the MRAs will also be placed in our Reading Room for future public use." The U.S. currently has MRAs with New Zealand, Canada, Jordan, Japan, Korea, the EU, Taiwan, Israel, Mexico, Singapore and the Dominican Republic. The MRAs allow CBP to consider participation in other customs regimes' trusted trader programs as similar to participating in the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism program and vice versa.

CBP Adds Restrictions to Archaeological Imports From Syria
August 15, 2016 |Customs

CBP issued restrictions for imports of archeological or ethnological material from Syria as part of a recently signed law meant to prevent antique trafficking by terrorist groups from the region (see 1605090026). The final rule (here), effective Aug. 15, restricts trade of 12 categories of goods with historical importance from the country if “unlawfully removed from Syria on or after March 15, 2011.”