The Office of Management and Budget Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs approved a new information collection requested by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative in order to begin the exclusion process for goods from China in the third tranche of Section 301 tariffs. OIRA approved the new form on June 14 after USTR sought an "emergency" review that allowed for expedited treatment, according to OIRA's page on the form. USTR requested the new information collection last month and said it planned to begin taking requests by around June 30 (see 1905210048).
Section 301 tariff exclusions
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative has established an exclusion process for Section 301 tariffs on China. In a series of rounds since the tariffs took effect, importers have been able to request exclusions from the tariffs, as well as extensions to existing exclusions. Many exclusions have been allowed to expire, as well. Section 301 exclusions are applicable to all importers of a given good, which may be defined as an entire tariff schedule subheading or a subset of a subheading outlined in a written description.
CBP created Harmonized System Update (HSU) 1911 on June 11, containing 4 Automated Broker Interface records and 1 Harmonized Tariff Schedule record, it said in a CSMS message. The update includes adjustments required by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative's announcement of new exemptions from Section 301 tariffs on China (see 1906030038). Modifications required by the verification of the 2019 HTS are included as well.
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CBP will add the ability in ACE for importers to file entries with the fifth group of exclusions from the first tranche of Section 301 tariffs on June 11, it said in a CSMS message. Filers of imported products that were granted an exclusion (see 1906030038) should report the regular Chapter 84, 85 or 90 Harmonized Tariff Schedule number, as well as subheading 9903.88.10, for products subject to Section 301 duties on products from China but that have been granted an exclusion by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. “Importers shall not submit the corresponding Chapter 99 HTS number for the Section 301 duties when HTS 9903.88.10 is submitted,” CBP said.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is publishing its latest list of product exclusions from the first tranche of $34 billion in Section 301 tariffs on China (see 1905090067). This fifth list of exclusions includes one full tariff schedule subheading, as well as 88 subsets of tariff numbers in chapters 84, 85 and 90. The new exclusions take effect retroactively from July 6, 2018, when the $34 billion in tariffs originally entered into force, and will remain for one year following publication of USTR’s notice. USTR is creating Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading 9903.88.10 for the new set of exclusions.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative issued a fifth list of product exclusions from Section 301 tariffs on goods from China. Newly exempt from the tariffs is one 10-digit subheading, 8537.10.8000, in its entirety, as well as "88 specially prepared product descriptions." The exclusions cover 464 separate requests, according to the notice, which is scheduled for publication in the June 4 Federal Register. The product exclusions apply retroactively to July 6, 2018, the date the first set of tariffs took effect, and will remain in effect until one year after the notice is published.
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Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who faced many critical questions from House Democrats on the China trade war, told them that consumer goods were left until last for a reason, and that a decision on levying tariffs on the remaining imports from China -- including toys, apparel, cellphones and computers -- has not yet been made. “There won’t be any decision probably for another 30 to 45 days," Mnuchin testified at the Financial Services Committee May 22. He said that he had recently spoken to the chief financial officer at Walmart about the increase in tariffs on the third tranche of Section 301 tariffs and the possibility of tariffs on nearly all remaining imports.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative plans to open the product exclusion process for the third tranche of Section 301 goods "on or around June 30," the agency said in a notice. The notice is a request to the Office of Management and Budget asking for expedited approval for an information collection for the exclusion process that was announced as part of the tariff increase for the third tranche of goods from China (see 1905080035). "USTR is establishing a process by which U.S. stakeholders can request the exclusion of particular products classified within a covered tariff subheading from the additional duties that went into effect on September 21, 2018, and May 10, 2019," the agency said. "USTR anticipates that the window for submitting exclusion requests will open on or around June 30, 2019. Requests for exclusion will have to identify a particular product and provide supporting data and the rationale for the requested exclusion. Within 14 days after USTR posts a request for exclusion, interested persons can provide a response with the reasons they support or oppose the request. Interested persons can reply to the response within 7 days after it is posted."
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