International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Sept. 9-13 in case they were missed.
Former Rep. Phil English, R-Pa., now co-chairman of Arent Fox's lobbying team, says the incentives are in the wrong place for House Democrats to ratify the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. English was featured on an Arent Fox Sept. 16 webinar on "working through the chaos" along with Grant Aldonas, a former top trade lawyer on the Senate Finance Committee, former Sen. Byron Dorgan and two trade lawyers. English said if the economy worsens, it hurts Trump, not House Democrats, and that the NAFTA rewrite faces "a great deal of opposition" from elements of the Democratic coalition. He said it may never get ratified if it doesn't get done in the next two months.
CBP will be submitting a new information request to the Office of Management and Budget that will be used as part of the Section 321 data pilot (see 1907220025), CBP said in a notice. CBP is seeking public comment on the information request and the expected burdens it would create. Such information request approval in required when the requests are imposed on 10 or more people. Comments are due Nov. 12.
CBP is planning to put out some more information about the power of attorney requirements for customs brokers filing Type 86 entries, a CBP official said during a Sept. 12 call with software developers. The agency's Type 86 test notice (see 1908120019) mentions that CBP is "requiring that consignees intending to file an entry type '86' appoint a customs broker to act as the importer of record (IOR) for the shipment" and that "customs brokers must be designated to enter qualifying shipments through a valid power of attorney." While filing Type 86 entries is considered "customs business," CBP's "intention was not to have a broker go out and get thousands of powers of attorney when they're doing these type of shipments," the CBP official said. "So we are working with our attorneys to get some kind of clarification out there of what we mean by 'power of attorney,'" she said. For Type 86 entries that are subject to the Section 301 tariffs on China, CBP does not "expect" the filer to include Chapter 99 tariff numbers that are required for other entries with Section 301 goods, the official said.
CBP offered a review of the Section 321 data pilot (see 1907220025) and the Type 86 entry test (see 1908120019) in a new document posted by the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America. The data pilot is meant to "more clearly and accurately identify the entity causing the 321 shipment to move, the final recipient, and the contents of the package," CBP said. The ACE Type 86 entry test is hoped to give "greater visibility into the de minimis universe for both CBP and [partner government agencies] PGAs while ensuring regulatory requirements are met." The data pilot is limited to nine participants, while the Type 86 test is open to all customs brokers and self-filers.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Aug. 19-23 in case they were missed.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Aug. 12-16 in case they were missed.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is reviewing the Section 321 provisions that allow for duty exemptions for low-value goods in light of "efforts to circumvent the requirements of the de minimis provisions in U.S. law," USTR Robert Lighthizer told lawmakers in recently released written responses to House Ways and Means Committee members following a June 19 hearing (see 1906190035). Asked about "the operation and impact of U.S. de minimis policy" by Rep. Bill Pascrell, D-N.J., Lighthizer said he's "particularly concerned" about those efforts to improperly use the exemption.