CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
CBP will handle shipments valued under $800 as below the de minimis threshold, starting March 10, CBP said in a CSMS message (here). As of that date, "shipments valued at $800 or less will be eligible for release under the same processes and with the same restrictions as currently apply for de minimis shipments of $200 or less," said CBP. The change follows the new customs reauthorization law that set the higher de minimis level (see 1602260049).
CBP and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative haven’t heard “any bicker or pushback” from Congressional committees recently briefed by the agencies on potential changes to the merchandise processing fee, said an industry executive that is following the issue. As expected (see 1601280044), the proposal calls for a four-tiered approach to the fees, according to summary of the idea. The executive branch is working “hand-in-glove” with Capitol Hill staff to rejigger MPF’s structure to satisfy Trans Pacific Partnership provisions that prohibit ad valorem import fees, said the executive. “I think they’re very much in agreement,” he said.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Feb. 29 - March 4 in case they were missed.
Sens. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., Chris Murphy, D-Conn., and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., called for U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman to urge Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to raise his country’s de minimis level to at least $150.52 (CA$200), when the Trudeau visits Washington on March 10. While Canada’s proximity to the U.S. often makes it the first foreign market that small- and medium-sized businesses contemplate for export, the country’s low de minimis level of CA$20 is a “distinct disadvantage” to companies that try to export to Canada, the Senators said (here). The most disadvantaged goods usually are “relatively low value items where the either the duty or costs associated with formal entry can effectively kill the sale,” the senators wrote. EBay is also be interested in such a change, it said recently (see 1601270013).
An increase to the de minimis threshold, the first of likely many changes to CBP's regulations due to the customs reauthorization law (see 1602260049), is expected to be a relatively easy update, said Mike Mullen, executive director of the Express Association of America. Mullen is involved in ongoing discussions between industry and CBP on the changes, which are targeted for implementation by March 10, he said during an interview on March 1. Mullen has long pushed for changes to de minimis on behalf of the group's members, which include UPS and FedEx.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Feb. 22-26 in case they were missed.
The Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 (here), signed into law Feb. 24, includes an overhaul of current law on drawback, including provisions for substitute drawback at the eight-digit level and a uniform five-year deadline for claims. It also increases the de minimis limit to $800, exempts container residue from duties, and eliminates an exemption from import bans on goods produced with forced labor. Finally, the law holds CBP to stricter reliquidation timelines, and fixes legislation enacted last year that would have resulted in higher tariffs on recreational performance outerwear.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, as part of its 2015/2016 Generalized System of Preferences Annual Product Review, published a breakdown of 2015 import statistics (here). The agency lists six items set to be removed from GSP eligibility (though four have pending petitions for waivers), 103 products eligible for a de minimis waiver, and 145 non-GSP-eligible products that might be reconsidered for GSP designation. Re-designations could be given based on 2015 trade data and consideration of certain statutory factors, USTR said. USTR will accept public comments until April 1 regarding possible de minimis competitive needs limitation waivers (CNL) and potential re-designations, the agency said in a notice (here).