The Census Bureau visited 13 companies in 2018 as part of its Automated Export System compliance review program, the agency said in an April 3 blog post. The average AES compliance rates prior to the visits were 85 percent, it said. Such visits are meant to "help noncompliant companies understand the export reporting requirements" and avoid government enforcement actions, Census said. Noncompliance includes "filing incorrect Schedule B or Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) numbers, filing with foreign currency, filing with incorrect units of measure, or failing to verify information with a commodity analyst," it said.

CBP's reallocation of 750 officers from Ports of Entry to Border Patrol is affecting exports from the U.S., according to an April 4 call with CBP officials. According to an emailed write-up of the call from the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America, this "deployment will affect outbound as well, as there is far fewer staff overall." The NCBFAA said that "CBP acknowledged that all southwest cargo ports are being impacted" and "the option is available to direct to other ports, but all will see an expected wait time increase."

The International Trade Commission is accepting proposals for changes to the World Customs Organization’s Harmonized System tariff schedule for potential adoption in 2027, it said in a notice. The proposals will be reviewed by the ITC, CBP and the Census Bureau, and will be published for further comment, prior to potential submission to the relevant WCO committees by November 2022 for final WCO approval by June 2024. Proposals are due to the ITC by March 1, 2020.

The Department of Homeland Security is pouring more resources into export enforcement with a new task force headquartered in Detroit, a CBP official said. Officials are calling the enforcement body a Global Trade Task Force: a DHS-led effort with cooperation from several other customs agencies, including CBP and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The task force, which launched in February, will use resources from multiple customs agencies to further tighten vulnerabilities in the commerce stream, said CBP Director of Field Operations Christopher Perry. “Each agency has unique capabilities and authorities,” Perry said. “By leveraging these capabilities, it helps us act as force multiplier.”

Census Bureau emailed some tips "on how to address the most frequent messages that were generated in [the Automated Export System] for this month." Response code 166, which involves a missing transportation reference number, can be resolved by verifying the number, correcting the shipment and resubmitting, Census said. "A number referencing the transportation booking number must be declared on a vessel shipment," it said. Response code 8H1 involves issues with the "reported Schedule B/HTS Number, the Value of Goods/Quantity (1) ratio." Filers should "verify the Value of Goods, Quantity 1 and Schedule B/HTS Number, correct the shipment and resubmit (if necessary). If the line item is verified correct as reported, no action is necessary," Census said. "For a particular Schedule B/HTS Number declared, the value of the goods divided by the first quantity should fall within a certain parameter based on historical statistical averages for that commodity. Ratios outside this pre-determined parameter might indicate either a keying error or misclassification of the product."

The country name for Macedonia is now North Macedonia in the Automated Export System, the Census Bureau said in an email. The International Standards Organization country code will remain as MK, it said. CBP posted an updated Automated Export System Trade Interface Requirements document that includes the change.

Delays for exporters seeking approval of labeling by the Food Safety and Inspection Service are now up to 24 to 25 business days, FSIS said in its March 8 constituent update newsletter. To minimize the delays, exporters should “clearly indicate the specific reasons(s) for temporary approval,” and “combine multiple labels into one temporary approval application if appropriate,” FSIS said. Label approval is only required for a few types of labels, but that includes products for export with labeling deviations from domestic products. Delays for labeling approvals have increased slightly since late February.

The Food and Drug Administration seeks comments on the burden on exporters of its requirement to obtain foreign letters of approval for the export of unapproved medical devices, it said. FDA requires that, for devices it has not approved that are to be exported, the exporter provide either a letter from the government of the importing country that the device is approved there, or a certification from a company official in the U.S. that the device doesn't violate the foreign country's laws. The agency is set to request an extension from the Office of Management and Budget for the existing information collection requirement. Comments on the requirements and FDA’s estimate of their burden on importers are due May 10.