USMCA

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, joined by five Republicans and two Democrats on the committee, told the Office of Management and Budget that a proposed rule to carve out items under Section 301 tariffs from de minimis needs “a thorough and complete review,” including a public comment period of 60 days. However, the letter was not signed by either of the two men who might be the chairman in January, depending on which party controls the Senate.

The Customs Rulings Online Search System (CROSS) was updated Dec. 21. The following headquarters rulings were modified recently, according to CBP:

International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from Dec. 14-18 in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.

Technical fixes for USMCA, including the restoration of merchandise processing fee refunds for post-entry filings, are part of the end-of-year legislative package expected to pass later today, a Senate Finance Committee spokesman said.

CBP recently deployed ACE functionalities for “triennial status report/fee” automation, the agency said in an updated ACE deployment schedule. “Three additional capabilities will deploy in 2022,” it said Dec. 17. “Remaining deployments include Broker License Application with interface to ACE, Broker Permit Application with interface to ACE, and Broker Annual Permit User Fee with interface to ACE.” CBP also revised the expected deployment dates for Real-time Automated Surety Interface and USMCA drawback, according to the change log.

Foreign-trade zone users will no longer be able to claim tariff benefits under USMCA when the products manufactured in those zones meet the free trade agreement's rules of origin. However, none of the producers had yet been able to avoid tariffs on inputs, National Association of Foreign-Trade Zones CEO Erik Autor told International Trade Today Dec. 21, as there had been no administrative process at CBP to implement the change.

The Commerce Department published notices in the Dec. 18 Federal Register on the following AD/CV duty proceedings (any notices that announce changes to AD/CV duty rates, scope, affected firms or effective dates will be detailed in another ITT article):

CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:​

CBP's “restrained enforcement” of the USMCA provisions will end as previously planned after Dec. 31 (see 2011040039), acting CBP Commissioner Mark Morgan said during the Dec. 16 Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) meeting. “Starting with the new year, CBP will enforce the USMCA as it does all other trade agreements,” he said. The agency allowed for lax enforcement of certifications of origin requirements for six months after the deal took effect so industry could adjust to the changes (see 2006020023). The CBP USMCA Center, created to help with USMCA implementation (see 2005120042), will remain in place for another three to five years, he said.

The Border Trade Alliance wants the USMCA “technical corrections” fix to leave the treatment of foreign-trade zones out, it said. BTA said it opposes the change “that would prevent goods manufactured within an FTZ from receiving reduced or duty-free treatment” under the agreement that replaced NAFTA and took effect July 1. “USMCA is a trade agreement for the 21st century, but reinstating an old NAFTA-era rule turns back the clock on U.S. manufacturing competitiveness,” BTA Chair Sergio Contreras said. “In keeping with the goal of modernizing U.S. trade policy under USMCA, products produced within FTZs should qualify for duty-free treatment.” The group thanked the six senators who publicly said they oppose the inclusion of FTZ rule of origin changes in a technical fixes bill.