U.S. Customs and Border Protection is now accepting entries for products that were excluded from the United States Trade Representative (USTR) Section 301 List 1 Tariffs on certain products imported from China. The exclusions granted thus far, which only apply to List 1 products subject to a 25 percent tariff, are retroactive to July 6, 2018, and will be effective until December 28, 2019.
News / Supply Chain Alerts
The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) finalized their Section 232 investigation into automotive imports and presented their findings to the President of the United States on February 17, 2019. The president now has 90 days to decide whether to act upon any of the recommendations.
In May 2018, the DOC self-initiated the investigation under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 to determine whether imports of automobiles and automotive parts threaten to impair U.S. national security. If the DOC makes an affirmative determination and the president concurs, he has the authority to adjust imports, including the use of tariffs and quotas. Any action to be taken would be imposed within 15 days of the president’s decision.
The final report has not yet been released to the public. If the process is the same as the Section 232 investigation on steel and aluminum, the report would be released within the next few weeks.
For more information please contact your local MIQ Logistics representative.
On February 15, 2019, the President of the United States signed a mini-omnibus bill which requires the United States Trade Representative (USTR) to introduce an exclusion process for Section 301 List 3 products to Congress by March 17, 2019. The tariffs on List 3 products are currently set at 10 percent and are scheduled to increase to 25 percent on March 2, 2019.
In an explanatory statement accompanying the appropriations legislation, the USTR office was directed to establish a List 3 exclusion process “following the same procedures as those in rounds 1 and 2”.
For more information please contact your local MIQ Logistics representative.
On January 11, 2019, in letters to lawmakers, United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer made clear that an exclusion process will not be initiated for the Section 301 List 3 products unless negotiations with China fail and the tariff on $200 Billion is raised from 10% to 25%. This increase is currently scheduled for March 2, 2019.
Lighthizer went on to address a request to exempt Chinese goods admitted into Foreign-Trade Zones (FTZ’s) by noting, “the longstanding rules and practices governing such entries continue to apply.” He continued, “As of this time, we have not found a basis for exempting U.S. importers who use FTZ’s from the additional duties when those duties apply to all other U.S. importers.”
For more information please contact your local MIQ Logistics representative.
U.S. West Coast ports, specifically Los Angeles and Long Beach terminals, continue to experience heavy congestion due to the unprecedented volumes arriving in the U.S. in anticipation of the upcoming Lunar New Year and the pending tariff changes. Containers are sitting longer than normal, and once the containers are out-gated, many are staying out longer than normal. These delays are contributing to chassis shortages in the area.
Key contributing factors:
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is advising that after March 22, 2019, all regulated composite wood products (i.e., panels) created from binding strands, particles, fibers, veneers, or boards of wood together with adhesives (i.e., glues), including hardwood plywood, medium-density fiberboard (includes thin-MDF), and particleboard must be certified and labeled as compliant with the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Title VI. All labels must include the panel producer’s name, lot number, and an EPA-recognized TSCA Title VI third-party certification (TPC) number. All importers will be responsible for providing a positive TSCA Import Certification for all applicable shipments, which will be transmitted to CBP via the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE). Upon request by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), importers must make available within thirty (30) calendar days certain records that document compliance with this rule. Recordkeeping requirements apply.
To keep the U.S. trade community informed during the Federal Government shutdown, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is holding weekly calls with the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America (NCBFAA).
This week CBP made the following announcements to the NCBFAA:
On Wednesday, December 19, 2018, the U.S. Trade Representatives (USTR) office released a modification to the effective date of the Section 301 tariffs on China goods in the Federal Register Notice (83_FR_65198).
Phase 1 of the Section 301 tariffs, which placed a 10% additional tariff on $200 billion of China goods (List 3), went into effect September 24, 2018. This recently released modification effects Phase 2 of the implementation, which will increase the additional tariffs on the 5700+ China goods specified in Phase 1 to 25%. The Phase 2 implementation, originally scheduled for January 1, 2019, is now set for March 2, 2019.
For more information please contact your local MIQ Logistics representative.
U.S. West Coast ports, specifically Los Angeles and Long Beach terminals have received unprecedented volumes and are experiencing extreme congestion prior to the Lunar New Year. Containers are reportedly sitting longer than normal, and once the containers are out-gated, many are staying out longer than normal. These delays are contributing to chassis shortages in the area.
On Saturday, December 1, 2018, the President of the United States agreed to suspend the increase in tariffs scheduled for January 1, 2019. The White House issued a statement, which included the following: “… President Trump has agreed that on January 1, 2019, he will leave the tariffs on $200 billion worth of product at the 10% rate, and not raise it to 25% at this time.”