CBP CROSS Rulings

After talks with the Commerce Department broke down over when Hong Kong-based apparel company Changji Esquel Textile (CJE) could be dropped from the agency's entity list, CJE resumed its litigation against the designation in federal court. The company, part of the Esquel group, on Aug. 27 filed a motion to re-set a hearing on a preliminary injunction against its placement on the list.

The Commerce Department hasn’t been able to move forward on its routed export rule because it is awaiting confirmation of political appointees in the Bureau of Industry and Security, according to a document recently posted by CBP. The rule, which has seen several delays, involves “critical issues that need attention” from BIS appointees, the document said. President Joe Biden recently nominated Alan Estevez to lead BIS (see 2107130004) and Thea Kendler to be assistant secretary for export administration (see 2107280063), but neither has had a confirmation hearing scheduled.

CBP will no longer classify shipments of certain used vehicles from the U.S. to Puerto Rico as exports, CBP said in an Aug. 24 message. Although the change will eliminate some filing requirements, others will remain, including certain Electronic Export Information filings.

CBP issued an interim final rule that implements several provisions included within the USMCA. The rule, which took effect July 1, implements USMCA language on import and export requirements, "general verifications and determinations of origin, commercial samples, goods re-entered after repair or alteration in Canada or Mexico, and penalties," among other things. Another interim final rule to implement other USMCA provisions will also be issued "at a later date," said CBP.

The Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) for CBP will next meet remotely June 23, CBP said in a notice. Comments are due in writing by June 22.

Lawyers speaking at the Foreign Trade Association’s World Trade Week event said CBP is already drowning because of the consequences of the massive increase in post-importation tariff exclusions, and they're expecting it to get worse. Michael Roll, from Roll & Harris trade law firm, said he's betting that the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative will reopen the exclusion process for Section 301 tariffs before summer's over. But he expects it will take until late 2021 or early 2022 for exclusions to be granted, which means many imports that entered after exclusions expired, or that never had exclusions, will have been liquidated by the time the importers learn they didn't have to pay the tariff.

No date has been scheduled yet for a vote on the China package championed by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., but lengthy amendments from senators are continuing to flow in, many with trade implications.

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Forwarders are seeing a rise in maximum penalties issued by CBP for violations surrounding ocean shipments that occurred over a year ago, National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America officials said. Joe Brogan, the chair of NCBFAA’s export compliance subcommittee, said CBP officers are increasingly digging up old violations where forwarders submitted incorrect transportation-related information, such as the date of export or the port of export, and have levied penalties higher than $14,000 for a “single occurrence.”

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