U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued the February 2004 U.S. Customs and Border Protection Modernization newsletter. This newsletter contains articles on new Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) account revenue features coming in summer 2004, the testing of prototypes of new border security technologies for possible incorporation into ACE, the January 2004 meeting of the Trade Support Network (TSN), etc. (February 2004 newsletter available at http://www.cbp.gov/ImageCache/cgov/content/import/modernization/reference/library/finalnews0204_2edoc/v1/finalnews0204.doc.)
In the February 25, 2004 issue of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Bulletin (CBP Bulletin) (Vol. 38, No. 9), CBP issued a notice proposing to modify or revoke four classification rulings on glass-beaded artificial fruit and foliage. CBP states that it is also proposing to revoke any treatment it has previously accorded to substantially identical transactions that are contrary to its position in this notice.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a notice regarding the visa and Certificate of Origin/Eligibility numbers for the U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement's (SFTA's) tariff preference level (TPL) for certain cotton or man-made fiber (MMF) apparel.
The Departmental Advisory Committee on Commercial Operations of the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (COAC) held a quarterly meeting on February 6, 2004 in Washington, DC to discuss, and receive updates from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials on, various customs and trade issues.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued electronic bulletin board (CEBB) messages which contain new instructions from the International Trade Administration (ITA) on accepting blanket certifications for certain exclusions from the countervailing (CV) duty order on dynamic random access memory semiconductors (DRAMS) from South Korea (C-580-851).
The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA) has issued a notice announcing that the U.S. and Vietnam have amended the existing U.S.-Vietnam textile and apparel visa arrangement in order to implement the Electronic Visa Information System (ELVIS) for textiles and apparel that are subject to quota limits, that are produced or manufactured in Vietnam and exported on or after March 22, 2004.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued two administrative messages stating that, effective February 23, 2004, the filing of U.S.-Chile Free Trade Agreement (UCFTA) and U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SFTA) claims via the Automated Broker Interface (ABI) system is now available for the tariff preference levels (TPLs) for textiles and/or apparel and the tariff rate quotas (TRQs) for agricultural products.
In the February 18, 2004 issue of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Bulletin (CBP Bulletin) (Vol. 38, No. 8), CBP issued notices: (a) proposing to revoke a ruling regarding the country of origin marking for flat flexible magnets, and (b) proposing to modify a classification ruling on a certain woven paper place mat. CBP states that it is also proposing to revoke or modify any treatment it has previously accorded to substantially identical transactions that are contrary to its position in these notices.
According to The Journal of Commerce (JoC), rules of origin under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) are so complex that many companies are forgoing NAFTA benefits, as they feel that the duty savings under NAFTA are not worth all the effort of compliance, such as obtaining manufacturers' affidavits from each supplier. (JoC, dated 02/16/04-02/22/04, www.joc.com)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has announced that the Automated Commercial System (ACS) has been updated to accept U.S.-Chile Free Trade Agreement (UCFTA) and U.S-Singapore FTA (SFTA) claims through the Automated Broker Interface (ABI), effective February 23, 2004.