CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The Port of Savannah has detained two shipments over possible forced labor involvement since March, CBP Commissioner Gil Kerlikowske said during a Dec. 15 speech in Savannah (here). "The first shipment was Stevia (ultimately released) and second was a shipment of Beedies (Indian cigarettes) that was excluded due to violations of Food and Drug Administration labeling requirements," according to his prepared remarks. Kerlikowske also reviewed various CBP accomplishments during the past year, including the use of ACE and the Centers of Excellence and Expertise.
CBP said it created Harmonized System Update (HSU) 1614 on Dec. 15, containing 27,913 ABI records and 4,820 harmonized tariff records (here). Modifications include the annual special program staged rate reductions and changes required by presidential proclamation. The modified records can be retrieved electronically via the procedures indicated in the CATAIR. Further information: Jennifer Keeling, Jennifer.Keeling@dhs.gov
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
A new joint enforcement effort between CBP, ICE and the Justice Department will target illegal imports of counterfeit consumer electronics, ICE said in a news release (here). The initiative, called Operation Surge Protector, "will focus on electronics vulnerable to counterfeiting, including phony digital media devices, power adapters and consumer technology powered by lithium ion batteries," ICE said. Government "collaboration with industry and external law-enforcement agencies has revealed that counterfeit electronics are a serious threat to public safety on par with fake pharmaceuticals and bogus automotive parts,” said Peter Edge, executive associate director of ICE Homeland Security Investigations. The intergovernmental National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center decided to review its enforcement work in this area after an increase in seizures during 2016 of hoverboards and other products that use lithium ion batteries, ICE said.
CBP posted a single-page fact sheet about shipments that are detained due to possible use of forced labor (here). For imported goods subject to a withhold release order (WRO), an importer will have three months to export the merchandise outside the U.S., CBP said. Such goods will be refused entry if "the importer fails to either re-export the detained shipment or timely furnish the required certificate of origin by the foreign seller or owner and a detailed statement demonstrating that the goods were not manufactured with forced labor," or if CBP doesn't consider submitted evidence satisfactory proof of admissibility, it said. Following the WRO, if CBP confirms its suspicions and issues a finding, an importer of merchandise subject to the finding will have three months after importation to provide proof that the goods weren't made using forced labor, the agency said. "If the proof submitted does not establish the admissibility of the merchandise, or if none is provided, the merchandise is subject to seizure." The agency is in the process of writing regulations following the customs reauthorization law's forced labor provisions that repealed the "consumptive demand" considerations (see 1606170040), which is causing some industry anxiety (see 1605170017).
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
A listing of recent antidumping and countervailing duty messages from the Commerce Department posted to CBP's website Dec. 9-13, along with the case number(s) and CBP message number, is provided below. The messages are available by searching for the listed CBP message number at http://adcvd.cbp.dhs.gov/adcvdweb.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The Customs Rulings Online Search System (CROSS) was updated Dec. 8 (here) with 15 rulings. The most recent ruling is dated Dec. 6.