A recent Federal Maritime Commission proposed rule would lead to a much fairer enforcement process for alleged violations of the Shipping Act, the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America said in comments submitted to the agency. The proposal would create a process for notifying a target of an investigation and allowing it to respond, and ensure that FMC commissioners see the target’s statement before deciding how to proceed. “As the members of the Commission would necessarily be involved at the outset, it seems more likely that potential enforcement cases would focus on issues that have a material adverse effect on trade or competition and minimize the initiation of cases that are based on relatively minor or technical infringements of regulations,” the NCBFAA said. The proposal would also make it “less likely that there would be an anecdotal approach to enforcement where only [the Bureau of Enforcement] and a respondent know what the issues in any prosecution actually involved.” But FMC should go beyond its proposal and create penalty and mitigation guidelines for Shipping Act violations, the trade group said.
The Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) for CBP will next meet Dec. 4, beginning at 1 p.m., in Washington, CBP said in a notice.
The Canadian Society of Customs Brokers, the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America and the Mexican Confederation of Customs Broker Associations (CAAAREM) signed a joint strategy agreement on Oct. 29, the NCBFAA said in an email to members. The groups agreed to "promote data harmonization and alignment" exchange implementation information about the revised NAFTA and "foster increased compliance with international trade agreements through shared communication with trade chain partners." The associations also agreed to "enhance and raise awareness of the role of customs brokers, including exploration of harmonization of [Authorized Economic Organization (AEO)]/trusted trader programs and mutual recognition arrangements." Broker training and professional development standards will be another goal for the groups in 2020.
Mexico’s Secretariat of Finance recently issued its 2019 edition of its General Regulations on Foreign Trade. Among other things, the new edition changes the deadline for customs clearance of disassembled machines, production lines or disassembled prefabricated buildings to 90 calendar days (previously it was a period of three months), said a circular from the Mexican Confederation of Customs Broker Associations (CAAAREM). The change takes effect Dec. 1, 2019. More information is available in a Latin American Confederation of Customs Brokers (CLAA) circular.
Argentina expanded its authorized economic operator program to include customs brokers, customs agents and “road transport shippers linked to foreign trade,” according to an Oct. 3 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. To participate in the AEO program, the brokers, agents and shippers must meet certain tax compliance and “commercial registration systems” requirements,” the report said. The change is part of Argentina’s effort to align its AEO program with the World Customs Organization's parameters, the HKTDC said.
Several issues related to detention and demurrage remain to be addressed as the Federal Maritime Commission moves forward with its recent proposed rule on detention and demurrage practices, said Richard Roche of Mohawk Global Logistics, at the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America’s government affairs conference Sept. 23 in Washington. Key among these are notices of availability for cargo and charges for customs holds, he said.
Mexico is again allowing more time for importers to comply with new certificate of compliance requirements for some Mexican product standards at the time of entry, the Mexican Confederation of Customs Broker Associations said in a recent circular. After two previous 15-day extensions, an importer will now have a longer grace period extending until Oct. 31 to obtain a certificate of compliance from a recognized certification body. Until the time period expires, importers that have not yet obtained the certificate may continue their current operations unchanged, as long as they submitted their request to the certification body by June 30 and include a receipt number for the request in their entry documentation.
Mexico is increasing tariffs and creating new tariff schedule provisions for iron and steel products, according to a notice in the Sept. 20 Diario Oficial. The country is creating 82 new tariff subheadings to identify different types of iron and steel, modifying 25 subheadings and eliminating 21, all to improve monitoring required under the agreement to end U.S. Section 232 tariffs on Mexico. Mexico is also increasing tariffs to 15 percent for more than 200 subheadings covering iron and steel products that were previously dutiable at 3 percent to 5 percent, and is modifying the text of 22 other subheadings and increasing the applicable tariff rate to 15 percent, said a Mexican Confederation of Customs Broker Associations (CAAAREM) circular posted by the consultancy AJR Mexico. Rates will be decreased every two years by 5 percent, so duties on these subheadings will fall to 10 percent in 2021 and to 5 percent in 2023 before being eliminated entirely in 2024. Mexico is also increasing tariffs on other tariff subheadings for iron and steel products, and adding iron and steel products to maquiladora and sectoral promotion programs. The changes took effect Sept. 22.
The European Union has been “very slow” to impose more sanctions on Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro-led regime, a senior State Department official said Sept. 23. The U.S. wants the EU to follow through on sanctions it said it would impose if the Norway-brokered negotiation broke down between the Maduro regime and the opposition party, the official said. The talks ended earlier this month. “We all understand that they have their procedures and that it’s hard with 28 countries,” the official said of the EU, “but I would hope to see movement in October.”
CBP will eliminate penalties for minor violations of Census Bureau export filing requirements as part of its upcoming electronic export manifest rollout, said Jim Swanson, director of CBP’s Cargo and Security Controls Division.