CBP is banning imports of aluminum extrusions and profile products made by Kingtom Aluminio S.R.L., after finding the use of forced labor at the company’s factory in the Dominican Republic. The agency’s forced labor finding means “aluminum extrusions and profile products and derivatives produced or manufactured wholly or in part by Kingtom Aluminio” using aluminum goods of Chapter 76 of the tariff schedule will be detained beginning Dec. 4, as will any such goods that have already been imported but not yet released from CBP custody by that date.
Forced Labor
CBP is the primary U.S. agency tasked with combating forced labor in international trade. It is the only agency with legal authority to take enforcement action and prevent entry into domestic commerce of goods produced with forced labor. CBP combats forced labor by issuing Withhold Release Orders (WROs) and Findings, and enforcement of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA), and Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA). Goods subject to WROs and Findings, UFLPA, and CAATSA status cannot be entered at any ports of the U.S.
The House passed a bill that would create a task force in DOJ to increase prosecutions of tariff evasion, violations of the forced labor provision and ban on goods made in North Korea, trade-based money laundering and smuggling. The bill passed by a voice vote Dec. 3.
CBP has determined that Kingtom Aluminio's aluminum extrusions were produced or manufactured using forced labor, the agency said in a notice. The determination applies to any merchandise imported on or after Dec. 4, as well as any merchandise that has been imported into the U.S. but has not been released from CBP custody.
The Canada Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) terminated its review of human rights complaints against Ralph Lauren Canada, the agency announced last week. The company participated in a confidential dispute settlement process with the parties that filed the complaint against the company; in June 2024, the complainants notified CORE of their decision to withdraw the complaint given "satisfactory responses" from Ralph Lauren.
The Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee for CBP holds its next quarterly meeting Dec. 11 remotely and in person in Washington, D.C., at 1 p.m. EST, CBP said in a notice. Comments are due by Dec. 6.
DHS added 30 more companies to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List for allegedly using forced labor or participating in forced labor schemes, it said in a notice. Some of the companies are in the metals sector, including the mining, smelting and processing of gold, copper, lithium, beryllium, nickel, manganese, chromium, iron and aluminum. Other newly listed entities produce food products, including tomatoes, tomato paste, ginger and garlic, edible seeds, walnuts and herbs for medicinal purposes. The listings take effect Nov. 25.
There are now 107 companies flagged by U.S. regulators for using forced labor or sourcing materials from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China, with the inclusion of 29 more companies, DHS said.
EU ministers this week officially adopted a ban on products made with forced labor, marking one of the final steps in a yearslong lawmaking process designed to eliminate EU imports, exports or other sales of those goods (see 2404230048 and 2403050035). The new regulations will apply about three years after publication in the Official Journal of the EU.
The number of shipments stopped in October by CBP because of concerns over forced labor rose on a year-over-year and sequential basis, even though the value of those stopped shipments decreased over those same periods, according to CBP data.
Correction: Tasha Reid Hippolyte, DHS deputy assistant secretary for trade and economic competitiveness, said (see 2411130036) that she is asking other decisionmakers in DHS to publish Chinese-language names of Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List firms, or the addresses of companies that have been added to the UFLPA Entity List. She said the easiest request to fulfill, "the one that I'm pushing," is to provide the Chinese-language names.