The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is increasing the in-quota amount of refined sugar, other than specialty sugar, available to Canada, per the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Effective July 1, USTR is increasing the amount of Canadian refined sugar allowed under the TRQ by 36,287 metric tons raw value (MTRV), USTR said. “Refined sugar imported from Canada pursuant to this notice may be made from non-originating raw sugar,” the agency said. “Only refined sugar with a sucrose content, by weight in the dry state, corresponding to a reading of 99.5 degrees polarity or more will be permitted. No certificate for quota eligibility is required for sugar entering under this additional in-quota quantity.”
USMCA
The U.S.-Mexico-Canada agreement is a free trade agreement between the three countries, also known as CUSMA in Canada and T-MEC in Mexico. Replacing the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 2020, the agreement contains a unique sunset provision where, after six years (in 2026), any of the three parties may decide not to continue the agreement in its current form and begin a period of up to 10 years where USMCA provisions may be renegotiated.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is establishing a new tariff-rate quota for imports of sugar-containing products from Canada under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, it said in a notice. Effective July 1, the TRQ will allow imports at an in-quota rate of up to 9,600 metric tons of sugar-containing products, as defined in Annex 2-B to USMCA. USTR will require export certificates issued by the Canadian government for goods entered under the TRQ. “No SCP that is the product of Canada will be permitted entry under the in-quota tariff rate established for imports of SCPs from Canada, unless at the time of entry the person entering the SCP makes a declaration to [CBP], in the form and manner prescribed by CBP, that a valid export certificate is in effect for the SCP,” USTR said in the notice. The certificate requirement will remain in effect going forward unless USTR issues a determination that export certificates will not be required in any given year.
CBP created Harmonized System Update (HSU) 2005 June 29, containing 124,980 Automated Broker Interface records and 24,925 Harmonized Tariff Schedule records, it said in a CSMS message. The update includes changes necessary to implement the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement and to support the automation of softwood lumber assessments. The update also covers modifications mandated by the 484 F Committee (the Committee for Statistical Annotation of Tariff Schedules) and recent Section 301 tariff exclusions. Further information: Jennifer Keeling, Jennifer.L.Keeling@cbp.dhs.gov.
CBP is issuing a notice amending its National Customs Automation Program reconciliation test to provide for the filing of post-importation claims under 19 USC 1520(d) -- also known as 520(d) claims -- for U.S.-Canada-Mexico Agreement treatment beginning on July 1. As with 520(d) claims for NAFTA and other free trade agreements, importers of entries flagged for USMCA must file their reconciliation entries within 12 months of the earliest import date for the flag. Post-importation refunds of merchandise processing fees (MPF) are not currently allowed under USMCA, but CBP says importers may “wish to flag USMCA entries for the possibility of MPF refunds for a post-importation USMCA claim, as CBP will provide for refunds consistent with any legislative changes.” For goods entered prior to July 1, the date when USMCA takes effect, importers may continue to submit post-importation NAFTA claims. “Since importers may file post-importation claims at any time within one year after the date of importation, no post-importation claims for NAFTA preference will be accepted after June 30, 2021,” CBP said.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for June 22-26 in case they were missed.
The Labor Department is seeking comments on its interim rules for how automakers can establish that enough of their vehicles were produced with $16/hour labor. Stakeholders have until Aug. 31 to comment.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The process to submit written complaints for either the rapid response mechanism or for violations of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement's labor chapter will be published in the Federal Register June 30, and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is soliciting comments on the submission procedures. Comments are due by Aug. 15.
CBP on June 29 posted a series of fact sheets on upcoming requirements under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement that are set to take effect July 1. The fact sheets highlight key differences between USMCA and NAFTA, including in the areas of customs duties, temporary admission, treatment of customs duties, most favored nation tariff rates, indirect materials and intermediate materials. Others cover USMCA provisions on regional value content, accumulation, recovered materials, sets and kits, accessories, remanufactured goods and fungible materials. The fact sheets should be considered guidance documents for informational and advisory purposes only, and are not intended to have legal or binding effect, CBP said.
Although lawmakers thought eliminating the NAFTA certificate would be helpful, some importers are more comfortable with structure, so there will be a certificate template available on CBP's trade agreements web page “as soon as possible,” Adam Sulewski, USMCA Center project leader at CBP, said during a conference call June 29. He reminded importers, “We can accept those required nine data elements in any form.”