CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The State Department through a final rule is amending the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) to allow CBP to implement the International Trade Data System (ITDS)/ACE for arms imports and exports, utilizing the State Department Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) partner government agency message set, State said (here). The rule will become effective on Dec. 31. Starting that day, traders declaring permanent or temporary exports and temporary imports "will input data relevant to DDTC in CBP’s electronic system(s)," DDTC said. "CBP will transmit the relevant shipment details to DDTC via an electronic data exchange, eliminating the need for traders to notify DDTC separately."
The Centers for Disease Control will on Dec. 30 require submission of several forms via the Document Imaging System for entries filed electronically in ACE, it said (here). Under a new agency policy, filers of electronic entries will have to file the following forms via DIS: APHIS/CDC Form 2 (Request to Transfer Select Agents and Toxins); CDC Form 0.0728 (Permit to Import or Transfer Etiologic Agents or Vectors of Human Disease); rabies vaccination certificates for dogs; CDC approval of confinement agreement issuance letters and CDC permission letters for importation of African rodents, civets or turtles; CDC non-human primate notification messages; and certifications of materials not known to contain or suspected of containing an infectious biological agent, or has been rendered noninfectious.
The Drug Enforcement Administration is issuing a final rule (here) amending its regulations to require electronic filing of permit applications, import and export declarations, and other required filings and reports for the importation and exportation of controlled substances, listed chemicals, and tableting and encapsulating machines. The agency is eliminating paper filing of most DEA-required submissions entirely, instead requiring importers and exporters to file via the DEA Office of Diversion Control secure network application, it said.
CBP issued the following release on commercial trade and related matters:
CBP changed the name of the ACE Business Office to the Trade Transformation Office, according CBP's contact information page (here). Debbie Augustin, who oversaw the ACE Business Office, is now the executive director of the Trade Transformation Office. The agency also changed the Office of Commercial Targeting and Enforcement to the Trade Remedy Law Enforcement Directorate, it said. That group also saw several personnel and title changes, according to CBP's page. Among the additions are Brandon Lord as the Trade Enforcement Task Force leader, Carrie Owens as acting director of the Enforcement Operations Division and Virginia McPherson as chief of the Civil Penalties Branch.
CBP issued the following release on commercial trade and related matters:
Despite some industry objections to CBP's proposal to end the use of "blanket certification" under Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) regulations (see 1608260032), the agency declined to stray from those plans in the final rule, it said in a notice (here). Blanket certifications are used to indicate either TSCA applicability or not -- called a "negative certification" -- for a wide range of products subject to Environmental Protection Agency reporting requirements. Commenters on the proposed changes said the end to blanket certification seems to go against the ongoing efforts to streamline trade processing (see 1609300031). The final rule is effective Jan. 26.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
Importers working with CBP’s Centers of Excellence and Expertise see fewer requests for information and notices of action than their counterparts that file at ports of entry, according to a report commissioned by CBP as part of its CEE rulemaking process (here). On average, participants see 78 percent fewer CBP Form 28s and 28 percent fewer CBP Form 29s after joining a CEE, which could be a sign that staff at the CEEs is becoming more knowledgeable and has less need to request more information, said the report, which was issued in 2015 but only recently released to the public.