CBP and other agencies involved in trade still have some ways to go before resolving an ongoing debate on how to describe goods in Section 321 shipments, said Christa Brzozowski, deputy assistant secretary for trade and transport at the Department of Homeland Security, at the U.S. Air Cargo Industry Affairs Summit Sept. 6 in Washington. The government still needs to work through process issues related to what goods are eligible for expedited release, and what role partner government agencies (PGAs) will have in the process, before considering whether to require 10-digit Harmonized Tariff Schedule numbers or written descriptors, she said.
CBP posted draft recommendations from the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) e-commerce working group on Section 321 entries ahead of the COAC meeting on Aug. 23 in San Diego. The recommendations "are intended to improve the import process from a facilitation and enforcement perspective for section 321-eligible shipments across all modes of transportation," the working group said. CBP issued an interim final rule on the de minimis level last year and raised a number of questions on the role of other agencies' requirements for such shipments (see 1608250029).
Consolidated online orders of goods that fall under the de minimis value threshold and are sent directly to the consumer are eligible for Section 321 exemptions, CBP said in a July 26 ruling. Unlike situations in which commercial shipments of low-value products are sent to a retailer to be put up for sale (see 1707310053), CBP allows for duty-free entry of grouped orders addressed to the end customer, CBP said. The ruling request involved e-commerce orders of merchandise through Zara.com and Fashion Retail, a Spanish company that handles shipments of the orders, CBP said.
The aggregate value limit of $800 per day for informal entry and duty-free treatment for commercial shipments covers retailers, rather than end-purchasers, CBP said in a July 19 ruling, HQ H275530. The ruling followed a request from Arkel about the company's ability to ship bike parts under the de minimis value to be stocked by retail stores in the U.S. Section 321 allows for importations under the de minimis value to enter duty free and with less processing by the government.
The Food and Drug Administration updated a 1994 notice that identified categories of products that can be released by CBP without FDA notification when under the de minimis value (Section 321) to reflect some recent changes, the agency said in a CSMS message (here). While the FDA already updated a regulatory procedural manual after the CBP de minimis threshold was increased from $200 to $800 (here), that 1994 notice was due for an update, it said. "Based on conversations with stakeholders, FDA reporting requirements for de minimis shipments were unclear given FDA’s legacy CSMS messages on such low value shipments," it said.
AUSTIN, Texas -- CBP Acting Commissioner Kevin McAleenan will raise the need for a worldwide unique facility identifier when he travels to Brussels in early July for a meeting of the World Customs Organization policy council, Valerie Neuhart, acting director of CBP’s Office of Trade Relations, said on June 21. McAleenan will be joined in the effort by representatives from Canada and Mexico, who have also been in discussions with CBP about harmonizing unique facility identifiers, she said, speaking during a panel discussion of upcoming ACE priorities at the American Association of Exporters and Importers annual conference.
SCOTTSDALE, Arizona -- The increase in the de minimis value threshold last year seems already to be driving a shift in international trade patterns, said Brenda Smith, executive assistant commissioner for the CBP Office of Trade, during a May 25 interview at the West Coast Trade Symposium. "What we're seeing is significant changes in supply chains," reflected in the growing number of Section 321 entries, she said. For example, one port in Alabama with few CBP officers "is suddenly getting this flood because it's close to a distribution center," she said. Likely, that's a result of container-loads full of under $800 small packages that qualify for de minimis, she said.
SCOTTSDALE, Arizona -- CBP is looking at a wide range of options for meeting the goals of the March executive order (see 1704030033) meant to resolve issues of unpaid antidumping and countervailing duties, said Troy Riley, executive director-Commercial Targeting and Enforcement in the CBP Office of Trade. Riley, who is leading implementation of the executive order, discussed several things being considered, including suspending importer of record numbers that haven't been used in years and new bonding schemes, during a panel on May 24 at the West Coast Trade Symposium. Brenda Smith, executive assistant commissioner for the CBP Office of Trade, alluded to the likelihood of additional orders along the same lines. "My guess is we have not seen the end of" trade-focused executive orders, said Smith, who moderated the panel.
A lack of clarity on "a unique identifier for supply chain operators crossing borders" is limiting the potential for trusted trader programs internationally, CBP Acting Commissioner Kevin McAleenan said during a May 17 speech at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Global Supply Chain Summit. "We've been working so hard to recognize Authorized Economic Operator programs globally with partners, we've entered into Mutual Recognition Agreements, we're intending to expand them," but "they are not having dramatic operational value for our trade partnership," he said. McAleenan has been pushing to standardize unique identifiers (see 1612020024).