Importers can't make changes to the amount of antidumping or countervailing duties deducted from the transaction value even if there is a difference between the original cash deposit amount and the actual amount subsequently assessed on Delivered Duty Paid entries, CBP said in a May 26 ruling recently released by the agency. The ruling is a result of an internal advice request from the Industrial and Manufacturing Materials Center of Excellence and Expertise about AD/CV duties on entries of softwood lumber, CBP said. The ruling addresses multiple questions involving how and when such AD/CV duties can be deducted from the value based on a "representative entry."

The addition of a second forced labor investigations branch (see 2107210040) within CBP is expected to result in more enforcement actions outside of Asia, Ana Hinojosa, who heads CBP’s Trade Remedy and Law Enforcement Directorate, said while speaking at the National Association of Foreign-Trade Zones virtual conference Sept. 28. “We are expecting, because we now have two branches, to see a little bit more diversity in where some of the cases originate from,” she said. While Asia will remain a priority within CBP, “I would envision that in this coming year some of the withhold release orders will be focused on cases” in Latin America, the Middle East and Africa.

Although continuing the treatment of customs brokers' pass-throughs to CBP in bankruptcy is not controversial, lawmakers say, the bill that would make this treatment permanent has a ways to go to be able to get a vote before the temporary protection expires.

International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from Sept. 20-24 in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.

Most trade groups and companies that have filed comments so far on extending Section 301 tariff exclusions on COVID-19 pandemic-related imports from China want those tariffs to continue to be waived. Comments were due Sept. 27. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative announced Sept. 27 that it will temporarily extend the exclusions to Nov. 14, rather than Sept. 30, so that agency employees can have more time to analyze public comments (see 2109270044).

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative will allow a short-term extension for the exclusions on goods used to treat COVID-19 from Section 301 tariffs on goods from China, it said in a notice posted on the agency's website. The exclusions were set to expire Sept. 30, but USTR said it will extend the exclusions for 45 days to give the agency more time to review comments submitted about a longer extension.

Imported Apple products should be subject to a withhold release order and blocked at the ports due to possible involvement of forced labor in China, Campaign for Accountability said in Sept. 27 filing. "The seizure of Apple imports credibly tied to forced labor would be consistent with other recent CBP enforcement actions" and "[t]here is now compelling evidence that Apple iPhones, computers, and other products should be added to the list," the non-profit said in its submission.

The Commerce Department has initiated a Section 232 case to determine whether the importation of neodymium magnets, a type of rare-earth magnet used to improve motor efficiency, is imperiling the national security of the United States. The department signaled it might initiate such an investigation back in June (see 2106080002), when it published a supply chain study.

CBP released details on the timelines used for responding to allegations of forced labor in a supply chain, in a July 30 report to Congress posted to the Department of Homeland Security website Sept. 22. The timelines “generally reflect the lifecycle of CBP responding to a petition; however, responding to a petition is a law enforcement investigation and not a linear administrative process,” DHS said. As a result, “extraordinarily complicated investigations, case prioritization, available resources, and other significant factors may affect the actual timeline of certain case,” DHS said.

The Environmental Protection Agency on Sept. 23 released a final rule that sets a quota system for imports of hydrofluorocarbons that will eventually reduce imports of the greenhouse gases by 85 percent by 2036. The new regulations provide for company-specific allocations of allowances to import HFCs in 2022 and 2023, with allowances after that to be set in a future Federal Register notice. EPA intends to issue 2022 allowances by Oct. 1, it said in the final rule, which has yet to be scheduled for publication.