Quebec is increasing the de minimis threshold for non-taxable imports from Mexico from $20 to $40 (in Canadian dollars), according to a July 31 report from KPMG. KPMG said the change is “related to the implementation” of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, but did not specify when the change would take effect.
The footnote in the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement that says that the U.S. could change its de minimis level to match Canada's and Mexico's levels was roundly rejected by the Senate Finance Committee on July 30, when the topic was one of the most-discussed aspects of the deal. Paula Barnett, owner of Paula Elaine Barnett jewelry, was the first witness who testified, and she told the committee that she does not want U.S. de minimis levels lowered, because she doesn't have to pay tariffs when goods are returned from outside the country, and because she purchases opals from Mexico, and those purchases are under the $800 threshold.
The EU's customs exemptions for low-value shipments may encourage undervaluation, the European Court of Auditors said in a report on the EU's collection of customs duties for e-commerce imports. Customs duties aren't levied on imports of goods equal to or less than €150. "These low value consignment reliefs (LVCR) can be abused via: (i) undervaluation of goods, which are declared below the thresholds for the VAT and/or customs exemptions; (ii) splitting consignments to be under the threshold limit; (iii) importing of either commercial consignments declared as gifts or of goods which are ineligible for the relief," the auditors said.
Export Compliance Daily is providing readers with some of the top stories for July 8-12 in case they were missed.
In the July 5 edition of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted:
Norway’s Ministry of Finance proposed the elimination of value-added tax exemptions on imports of “low value goods,” Norway said in a notice. Among several changes, the ministry plans to impose a 25 percent VAT on foreign sellers and “online marketplaces” for all goods, except food, valued under about $350, KPMG said in a July 3 report. The proposal would also create a “simplified system” for foreign sellers to register, declare and pay VATs on their exports to Norway, the ministry said. If implemented, the changes would take effect Jan. 1, 2020.
The EU is creating a new, streamlined declaration type for low value imports worth less than €120, it said in a notice published in the July 5 Official Journal. The new customs declaration type contains fewer data elements than standard customs declarations, but still includes information on value-added tax as a result of the upcoming assessment of value-added tax on low-value imports. The new declaration type must be implemented by the time the VAT exemption for low-value gods is eliminated on Jan. 1, 2021, the notice said.
FedEx filed a lawsuit against the Commerce Department and the Bureau of Industry and Security for imposing export controls it says are “unconstitutional” and “impossible” to comply with, according to court records. The company also said BIS’s Entity List “imposes an overbroad, disproportionate burden on FedEx,” records show. The suit asks the court to stop Commerce from enforcing certain sections of the Export Administration Regulations on FedEx, to declare the EAR “unlawful” and to award FedEx any additional appropriate relief, including “costs and expenses.”
The Canada Border Services Agency plans to update its e-commerce program and will no longer be accepting applications for the Courier Low Value Shipment program, the CBSA said in a June 19 customs notice. A moratorium on the applications is effective June 3, it said. "In the interim, the Program will remain in effect for existing participants only," it said.
The New Democrats caucus, which includes the most pro-free-trade members in the party in the House of Representatives, has released a lengthy list of things they want to see in exchange for their votes for the new NAFTA ratification.