Obama Signs Customs Reauthorization into Law

President Barack Obama signed the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015, formalizing the legislation as law on Feb. 24, the White House said. The new law marks the culmination of several years of discussion and debate largely over new antidumping and countervailing duty enforcement language. The enactment initiates a number of major changes to customs processing, such as new importer identification requirements for customs brokers, fixes to tariffs for recreational performance outerwear, and updates to reliquidation procedures. An increase of the "de minimis" threshold to $800 will take effect 15 days after enactment, with effective dates varying for other individual provisions. International Trade Today will provide a multi-part summary of the new law in coming issues.