International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Oct. 16-20 in case they were missed.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Oct. 10-13 in case they were missed.
RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. -- Any two-track solution to Section 321 filing in both the Automated Broker Interface and the Automated Manifest System must have the same data requirements in each, customs brokers said during a panel discussion at the Western Cargo Conference on Oct. 13. Requiring a more detailed data set, while maintaining the current stripped-down data elements in AMS, would mean filers would be incentivized to continue clearing Section 321 entries off the manifest, the brokers said.
The U.S., Canada and Mexico have agreed in principle to NAFTA language that would forbid countries from requiring paper certificates of origin to qualify for NAFTA treatment, and Canada and Mexico are now considering increasing their de minimis levels closer to the U.S.’s $800 level, according to lobbyists close to negotiations. The NAFTA parties easily agreed to language to eliminate the use of paper documents in any customs processes that currently call for such credentials, including paper certificates of origin, said a lobbyist who is a cleared adviser for NAFTA negotiations. The countries hope that this will help drive a shared goal to modernize trade facilitation and everyday customs procedures across North America, he said. Parties are conducting the fourth round of NAFTA renegotiations Oct. 11-17 in Arlington, Virginia.
China’s customs regime could benefit from standardized procedures across all ports as well as joint work between the U.S. government and Chinese Customs to stop counterfeits from leaving China, trade groups said in comments to the interagency Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC) regarding China’s adherence to its World Trade Organization commitments.The U.S. Council for International Business (USCIB) detailed several aspects of how China can improve its customs administration, calling for the U.S. to ensure China posts annual changes to its Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) at least three months before the effective date, establishment of a bilateral customs dialog, and private-sector sharing of best practices to enhance an automated clearance process laden with “uncertainty and inefficiencies.”
Trade associations representing several industries on Sept. 22 united to promote the continuation in NAFTA of a stable and certain investor-state dispute settlement system, amid concerns the Trump administration will move to change or remove ISDS provisions from the deal (see 1708090014 and 1708250013). Anything that would weaken or “not guarantee” ISDS in NAFTA would have costs for U.S. foreign investments and would translate to harming U.S. jobs, National Association of Manufacturers Vice President for International Economic Affairs Policy Linda Dempsey said on a conference call with reporters. Select changes or a lack of certainty with regard to ISDS in NAFTA wouldn’t just hurt “the direct jobs that we see of the exports of pipe or steel, or mining equipment, or all of these other types of products; it’s the jobs associated in those communities -- the suppliers, the small businesses that support the production in those communities,” she said.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Sept. 11-15 in case they were missed.
CBP is aiming to release rules for entry filings of goods valued under the $800 de minimis threshold "before the end of the calendar year," said Brenda Smith, executive assistant commissioner for the CBP Office of Trade, on Sept. 12 during the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America conference in Washington. CBP knows "it's a big deal" to customs brokers "whether we require the classification on all small packages," she said. It's a "thorny issue," but "I think we are close to having kind of the final conversations," so "look forward to that in the next couple months."
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Sept. 5-8 in case they were missed.
CBP’s Office of Field Operations has tentatively come up with some “parameters” for how it will handle Section 321 clearances going forward, said Jim Swanson, CBP director-cargo conveyance security and controls, at a National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America conference on Sept. 11. The agency has agreed on a two-track solution, allowing continued clearance in the Automated Manifest System while providing new capabilities for Section 321 in the Automated Broker Interface, he said. ABI filing will include a 10-digit Harmonized Tariff Schedule number as a data element, with the importer of record potentially optional, he said.