U.S. restrictions on exports of personal protective equipment are not expected to have a significant impact on U.S. industry, particularly because most U.S. companies produce those goods overseas, trade observers said. Companies have been more heavily impacted by recently announced Chinese restrictions on medical exports, which have caused customs delays and a backlog of shipments, the U.S.-China Business Council said.
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, who last week said that U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer is not sympathetic to auto industry complaints about U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement implementation, said that after talking to Lighthizer again, he has a different view. Lawmakers recently asked the USTR to delay the USMCA rules of origin requirements (see 2004130035).
India amended the conditions for imports of refined palm oil, the country’s Directorate General of Foreign Trade said in an April 13 notice. Import licenses will be valid for six months instead of the “usual” 18 months, India said, and its customs authority will “diligently enforce” Rules of Origin criteria for imports of the oil originating from Nepal and Bangladesh. The imports must also be accompanied by the “pre-purchase agreement.”
The delayed due dates for customs duties in Canada don't apply to debts due before March 25, the Canada Border Services Agency said in an April 11 email. “Debt due before March 25, 2020 is payable on the due date identified on the” Statement of Accounts, it said. “Debt due on or after March 25 2020, is payable on June 30, 2020. Only debt due on and after March 25, 2020 is eligible for the June extension,” it said. The CBSA recently extended the due date for regular customs duties to June 30 (see 2003270053).
A group of 31 House lawmakers, led by Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., and Rep. Jackie Walorski, R-Ind., is asking the U.S. trade representative to delay the switch-over to the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement auto rules of origin (ROO), even as the USMCA takes over from NAFTA. The group's letter, sent April 10, said the delay “is necessary to allow the auto industry an appropriate adjustment period and account for delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Alternatively, we ask that you seriously consider other accommodations or flexibilities that will allow the automotive sector to avoid being penalized by the new requirements upon the agreement’s entry into force.”
United Kingdom exporters will likely experience delayed response times when seeking export license information from the Department for International Trade, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, DIT said in an April 9 notice. Response times for requests for information will be doubled from 20 to 40 business days, the agency said. The virus has affected the agency’s ability to “manage export license applications and supporting documentation,” DIT said.
The United Kingdom’s Department for International Trade issued an April 9 guidance on remote compliance checks during the COVID-19 pandemic, detailing what steps companies should take to complete the checks, access their export records and more.
The government of Canada issued the following trade-related notices as of April 10 (note that some may also be given separate headlines):
After current and former lawmakers asked the Treasury Department to clarify its stance on humanitarian exports to sanctioned countries, the agency pushed back on accusations that sanctions are stopping those exports, saying it does not target legitimate exported aid. Some of those accusations are marred by a misunderstanding of Treasury’s general licenses and exemptions, said sanctions lawyer Doug Jacobson: they do allow a broad range of humanitarian exports to countries like Iran.
The European Commission asked Schengen Area member states to extend restrictions on non-essential travel until May 15 to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, the commission said April 8. The European Union originally requested a 30-day travel ban, but the virus requires “more than 30 days to be effective,” the commission said. The commission stressed that such a travel ban can only be effective if it is adopted by all EU and Schengen states “at all borders, with the same end date and in a uniform manner.”