Insights on Customs & Import Compliance

Not to be outdone by the recent USMCA breakthrough, there have been significant end-of-the-year developments on the Section 301 tariff front. US importers should take stock as they wrap up activities for 2019 and continue planning for 2020.

Earlier today, House Democrats appeared before cameras on Capitol Hill to announce they had reached an agreement with the Trump Administration on the final text of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

List 4A goes into effect, all Section 301 tariffs to increase by 5 percent, USTR deadlines loom, and the President orders American companies to “search for alternatives” to China sourcing. This is your end-of-summer Section 301 China tariffs roundup.

On August 1, 2019, Trump posted a tweet that beginning on September 1, 2019, importers can expect a 10% tariff on $300 billion of Chinese goods.

At a press conference at the G20 Summit in Japan on June 29, President Trump said he will not lift current Section 301 tariffs on China, but also would not add tariffs on any additional Chinese imports “for at least the time being” as part of an agreement to resume negotiations with China. 

On June 20, 2019, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) published a notice outlining the procedure for requesting exclusions from List 3 of the Section 301 tariffs on Chinese imports via a new web portal.

Because of the length of time since China Section 301 duties were first imposed on July 6, 2018, many 2018 entries first covered by the duties are approaching their liquidation date (if they have not liquidated already).

In response to the increasing numbers of illegal border crossers, primarily from the Central American countries of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala, crossing into the US along the US – Mexico border, President Trump has previously indicated he would “shut the border.”

On May 21, 2019, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) published a Federal Register notice requesting comments on the proposed exclusion process for List 3 of the Section 301 tariffs on Chinese imports.

For these tariffs to become effective, the US Trade Representative will need to publish a final notice after public comment and hearing.

On April 8, 2019, the USTR announced that it is initiating an investigation under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 to enforce the rights of the United States in the WTO dispute involving subsidies provided to the large civil aircraft industry by the European Union.

Companies have been hearing about a potential shut down of the US-Mexican border and we have compiled the latest information available.

The US Trade Representative (USTR) has released the first batch of approvals for exemptions from the 25% tariff on Chinese imports under Section 301 List 1. Of the 10,768 List 1 exclusions requests filed, the USTR has granted 984 exclusion requests (9%) and denied 1,257 requests (12%).

The US Government has been under a partial shutdown since December 21, 2018, and it is anyone’s guess when the shutdown will end. Congress has recessed until this week, and there is little word of progress among the parties.

If the turbulence of 2018 caused business executives grief, the year ahead is unlikely to provide much relief.  Foremost is the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). If most political pundits are correct, the three governments will likely be able to ratify the USMCA in time to be in full fo

In the last hour of the last day of last month, with 30 minutes to spare, US Trade Representative Lighthizer met the US self-imposed deadline and formally sent to Congress the agreed-upon text of a US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA.

US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer issued a statement on August 2, 2018, advising that President Trump has directed him to consider raising the previously proposed 10% additional duty to be applied to $200 billion worth of Chinese goods (referred to as the List 3 products) to 25%.

On July 18, 2018, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross announced the initiation of a Section 232 investigation into the impact of uranium imports on America’s national security.

On June 15, the United States Trade Representative released two product lists relating to Section 301 duties.

Despite Secretary Mnuchin’s statement last week that the Section 301 tariffs were “on hold,” President Trump announced this morning that he is moving ahead with the additional 25 percent ad valorem tariffs on certain Chinese imports to protect US intellectual property rights.

On May 20, 2018, Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin stated that the US was “putting the trade war on hold,” pending negotiations with China to reduce the US trade deficit and address certain acts, policies, and practices related to intellectual property rights.

Following a tweet from President Donald Trump that there was “big news coming soon” for the automotive industry, the Department of Commerce (DOC) formally announced on May 24, 2018 an investigation into the impact of certain automotive imports on US national security interests.

The Trump Administration did an about-face over the weekend, announcing that the sweeping 25 percent tariffs on products imported from China were placed on hold, as the two countries try to iron out a deal that would avoid the impending trade war.

The May 21 notice provides guidance on the manner in which imports whose exclusion requests are approved by the DOC should be entered in order to avoid the Section 232 duties.

Following the Presidential Proclamations issued April 30, 2018 regarding the imposition of double-digit tariffs on certain steel and aluminum imports (Section 232 tariffs), US Customs and Border Protection published further guidance detailing the implementation of the Section 232 tariffs.