The Van Buren Port of Entry, formerly a permit port, launched operations as a fully functioning commercial center Sept. 25. CBP designated the Van Buren, Maine port as fully functional on Sept. 24. CBP personnel are now able to facilitate the release of cargo through the use of current, state-of-the-art technology, enabling more efficient trade and travel service, CBP said. All existing Van Buren permits are canceled. All forms of formal and informal cargo must be presented at the Van Buren commercial center. Interested parties should contact Assistant Area Port Director for Trade Operations Deborah Zwearcan at (207) 771-3629 or deborah.zwearcan@dhs.gov.
CBP posted a Sept. 23 version of its CF 1400 (Record of Vessel in Foreign Trade Entrances) electronic query report of the Vessel Management System (VMS), in accordance with 19 CFR 4.95, organized by entrances. CBP also posted a version of its CF 1401 (Record of Vessel in Foreign Trade Clearances) electronic query report of the VMS, in accordance with 19 CFR 4.95, organized by clearances.
CBP New York scheduled a seminar on Harmonized Tariff Schedule Headings 9503 (Toys) and 9505 (Festive Articles) at JFK Airport, Jamaica, N.Y. from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m on Oct. 24, it said in an informational pipeline. The seminar will include a presentation by CBP's National Commodity Specialist Division, it said.
Customs Rulings Online Search System (CROSS) was updated Sept. 23. The corresponding downloadable rulings are now available.
CBP is requesting comments by Nov. 25 for an existing information collection on forms for manifest for the entry of merchandise free of duty. CBP proposes to extend the expiration date of this information collection with no change to the burden hours.
CBP released its Sept. 25 Customs Bulletin (Vol. 47, No. 40). While the Bulletin does not contain any ruling articles, it does include recent general notices and Court of International Trade decisions.
CBP will do an inspection when it encounters containers with seals that appear to be tampered with, said the CBP San Francisco field office in an information notice. CBP may also pursue penalty action against the responsible parties for missing and incorrect seal information and for manifest discrepancy, it said. Maritime containers in transit to the U.S. by vessel are required to be sealed with the seal meeting the ISO/PAS 17712 standard.
CBP’s Port of Seattle announced a free Steel Identification, Classification and Trade Law seminar Nov. 7-8 at the Henry Jackson Federal Building in Seattle. The seminar will be presented by technical, commercial and legal experts in the steel industry and will “enhance the knowledge level of steel importations” for CBP officials, other U.S. government officials and customhouse brokers. CBP encourages participants to register early due to limited space, via e-mail at lrmosser@windstream.net or via fax by 9 a.m. Oct. 14.
A listing of recent antidumping and countervailing duty messages from the Commerce Department posted to CBP's website Sept. 23, along with the case number(s) and CBP message number, is provided below. The messages are available by searching for the listed CBP message number at addcvd.cbp.gov. (CBP occasionally adds backdated messages without otherwise indicating which message was added. ITT will include a message date in parentheses in such cases.)
An illegally imported shipment of 42 pieces of coral was donated June 25 to the National Aquarium, Baltimore, to be used as educational tools in the Blacktip Reef exhibit and for conservation outreach efforts, school science programs and fabrication templates, CBP said. CBP said the corals were cut from reefs off the coast of the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific, and seized at the Port of Tampa in March 2012 for violation of the Endangered Species Act. According to CBP, such coral reefs are usually protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and require foreign CITES permits.