CBP Finds Programming Determines Country of Origin of Transceiver for Government Procurement

Pre-programmed network transceivers and high-speed cabling devices made in China or another "Asian country" are considered of Chinese origin for government procurement purposes, CBP said in a notice (here). "We find that the imported transceivers with a generic program will not be substantially transformed in the U.S." and "that the country where the last substantial transformation occurs is China or other Asian country where the hardware components are manufactured," CBP said. If the transceivers are imported completely non-functional and are programmed in the U.S., the goods are considered of U.S. origin, the agency said. "We find that the non-functional transceivers are substantially transformed as a result of downloading performed in the U.S., with proprietary software developed in the U.S.," CBP said.