The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently ruled against an importer seeking to file a late request for a Generalized System of Preferences benefits program refund after it missed the deadline due to a miscommunication with its broker. Affirming a decision issued by the Court of International Trade in September 2018 (see 1809240017), the Federal Circuit found valid CBP’s denial of Industrial Chemical’s protest to request refunds of duties paid during the 2013-15 GSP lapse. The Dec. 28, 2015, deadline for requesting the refunds was set by law, and CBP had no discretion to allow refund requests beyond that date, CAFC said. And while the protest was filed within 180 days of CBP’s denial of GSP refunds, it had to be filed within 180 days of the relevant entry’s liquidation, and it was not, the Federal Circuit said.
President Donald Trump, in a press conference with the president of Turkey on Nov. 13, said trade with Turkey “could be many times larger" than it is now, and that his administration has the goal of roughly quadrupling the volume of trade between the two countries, which would be $100 billion in two-way trade. According to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, U.S. goods exported to Turkey were valued at $10.2 billion, while goods imported totaled $10.3 billion.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Nov. 4-8 in case they were missed.
CBP created Harmonized System Update (HSU) 1918 on Oct. 31, containing 2,573 Automated Broker Interface records and 539 Harmonized Tariff Schedule records, it said in a CSMS message. The update includes recently announced changes to the Generalized System of Preferences (see 1910280044).
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Oct. 28 - Nov. 1 in case they were missed.
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Sen. Robert Menendez, D.-N.J., have asked U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer if Rudy Giuliani or Gordon Sondland, U.S. ambassador to the European Union, discussed Ukraine with him, as they try to find out why he withdrew a recommendation in August to partially restore Ukraine to the Generalized System of Preferences benefits program. About 150 tariff lines of Ukrainian exports were restored to GSP on Oct. 30 (see 1910280044). They also asked why it was withdrawn a second time on Oct. 17, and asked if USTR discussed the restoration with the president before the White House proclamation about Ukraine and GSP was issued Oct. 25.
The International Trade Commission issued Revision 16 to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule. Changes in the new edition that take effect Nov. 1 include the restoration of eligibility of many Ukrainian goods for the Generalized System of Preferences, as well as implementation of the results of the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative’s 2019 GSP product review, which also requires minor changes to tariff subheadings for certain plywood. A new set of exclusions from Section 301 tariffs on products from China are also added to the tariff schedule.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative released the results of its 2019 Generalized System of Preferences product review. Changes, which take effect Nov. 1, include new GSP eligibility for orchids from Thailand and certain types of plywood from Indonesia. USTR denied petitions to remove polyethylene terephthalate from Pakistan from GSP eligibility, as well as a competitive needs limitation (CNL) waiver for stearic acid from Indonesia, which will now be ineligible for GSP. USTR also said that subheading 8702.10.21, for motor vehicles with diesel engine, to transport 16 or more persons, from North Macedonia will also be ineligible for GSP after exceeding CNL import limits.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, as part of a broader announcement on changes to the Generalized System of Preferences, announced late Oct. 25 that about a third of Thailand's GSP-covered trade will exit the preferences program April 25, 2020, because it does not allow its workers to participate in collective bargaining and other labor rights, despite six years of engagement. The USTR said all seafood products are being removed from the program because of abuses of workers in that industry and in shipping; other products were chosen because Thai imports are a small share of the U.S. imports, but the U.S. is relatively important for Thai exporters. In all, GSP imports from Thailand were $4.4 billion last year, USTR said; after India's exclusion from the program earlier this year, Thailand accounted for the highest volume of exports qualifying for GSP. Even with the reduction, it will still be the largest beneficiary. The Associated Press reported Oct. 28 that Thai officials will seek to talk about averting the eligibility changes.