Insights on Customs & Import Compliance

Companies have been hearing about a potential shut down of the US-Mexican border and we have compiled the latest information available.

The US Trade Representative (USTR) has released the first batch of approvals for exemptions from the 25% tariff on Chinese imports under Section 301 List 1. Of the 10,768 List 1 exclusions requests filed, the USTR has granted 984 exclusion requests (9%) and denied 1,257 requests (12%).

The US Government has been under a partial shutdown since December 21, 2018, and it is anyone’s guess when the shutdown will end. Congress has recessed until this week, and there is little word of progress among the parties.

If the turbulence of 2018 caused business executives grief, the year ahead is unlikely to provide much relief.  Foremost is the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). If most political pundits are correct, the three governments will likely be able to ratify the USMCA in time to be in full fo

In the last hour of the last day of last month, with 30 minutes to spare, US Trade Representative Lighthizer met the US self-imposed deadline and formally sent to Congress the agreed-upon text of a US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA.

US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer issued a statement on August 2, 2018, advising that President Trump has directed him to consider raising the previously proposed 10% additional duty to be applied to $200 billion worth of Chinese goods (referred to as the List 3 products) to 25%.

On July 18, 2018, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross announced the initiation of a Section 232 investigation into the impact of uranium imports on America’s national security.

On June 15, the United States Trade Representative released two product lists relating to Section 301 duties.

Despite Secretary Mnuchin’s statement last week that the Section 301 tariffs were “on hold,” President Trump announced this morning that he is moving ahead with the additional 25 percent ad valorem tariffs on certain Chinese imports to protect US intellectual property rights.

On May 20, 2018, Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin stated that the US was “putting the trade war on hold,” pending negotiations with China to reduce the US trade deficit and address certain acts, policies, and practices related to intellectual property rights.

Following a tweet from President Donald Trump that there was “big news coming soon” for the automotive industry, the Department of Commerce (DOC) formally announced on May 24, 2018 an investigation into the impact of certain automotive imports on US national security interests.

The Trump Administration did an about-face over the weekend, announcing that the sweeping 25 percent tariffs on products imported from China were placed on hold, as the two countries try to iron out a deal that would avoid the impending trade war.

The May 21 notice provides guidance on the manner in which imports whose exclusion requests are approved by the DOC should be entered in order to avoid the Section 232 duties.

Following the Presidential Proclamations issued April 30, 2018 regarding the imposition of double-digit tariffs on certain steel and aluminum imports (Section 232 tariffs), US Customs and Border Protection published further guidance detailing the implementation of the Section 232 tariffs.

Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business has recognized 30 Arent Fox LLP attorneys as leaders in their field.

US Customs and Border Protection published guidance for claiming refunds on duty preference claims made under the Generalized System of Preferences between the program’s expiration on December 31, 2017 and the implementation date of its reauthorization date, April 22, 2018.

On March 22, 2018, President Trump signed a memorandum directing the US Trade Representative (USTR) to publish a proposed list of approximately 1,300 products of Chinese origin that would be subject to an additional 25 percent ad valorem tariff, pursuant to Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974.

On March 22, 2018, President Trump signed a memorandum that marks the start of a multi-faceted trade offensive against China designed to respond to the Administration’s findings of misappropriation of US intellectual property and discriminatory technology licensing practices.

Yesterday, March 8, 2018, President Trump formally announced and signed the proclamations to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports pursuant to Section 232 of the US Trade Expansion Act of 1962.

Now that the President has made his determination on the tariffs to be applied as a result of the Section 232 investigations of certain imports of steel and aluminum products, boardrooms around the globe are pondering the short and long-term implications to their corporate bottom lines.

The Commerce Department released its redacted public version of the Section 232 reports on the effects of imports of steel and aluminum on national security.

The beginning of a new year often brings new regulations or changes to programs. Customs programs are no exception. We have listed some key January 2018 changes for importers below.

Based on recent activity in Congress, the possibility of a shutdown of US federal government activities for at least a brief period of time is looming larger. The government is currently funded through December 22, 2017 and the prospect of a shutdown before the end of the year is growing.

Earlier this week, US Customs and Border Protection announced that registration for the 2017 East Coast Trade Symposium will open on Thursday, October 26th at 12:00 pm EST.

US Customs and Border Protection issued notices reminding the importing community of diversion procedures for cargo destined to US ports closed due to weather.