FDA is planning to begin a pilot program on its process for handling refused merchandise, the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America said in a Dec. 21 email. “The current process varies widely from port to port,” Mike Lahar, chair of the NCBFAA’s Regulatory Agencies Committee, said, according to the email. “In addition to this inconsistent enforcement, in every port the process is riddled with inefficiencies and requirements that conflict with the logistical and operational realities of supply chains,” he said. “A reimagined, uniform process is badly needed.” FDA did not immediately comment.
Customs brokers, after many years of lobbying (see 09021315), won a change to the treatment of duties transferred to them by importers that later go bankrupt. The brokers had argued that these duties should not be subject to clawback provisions under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, where payments to vendors within 90 days can be seized by the bankruptcy courts for redistribution.
CBP should work with the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee to “clarify the types of audits or reviews to which trusted trader partners may be subject regarding compliance, including forced labor,” the COAC Trusted Trader Working Group said in a recommendation that was approved during the Dec. 16 COAC meeting. Working group co-chair Alexandra Latham said CBP last month began Risk Analysis & Survey Assessments (RASAs) around forced labor (see 2012020046).
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The Treasury Department published its fall 2020 regulatory agenda for CBP. The agenda now mentions a proposal to end the de minimis exemption for goods subject to Section 301 tariffs. The proposal was previously disclosed by the Office of Management and Budget (see 2009040026), where it remains under review. Brenda Smith, CBP executive assistant international trade commissioner, recently cited some operational concerns with the idea (see 2011100034).
A California clothing importer and its owners were indicted over schemes to undervalue apparel and evade customs duties, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California said in a Dec. 10 news release. The importer, C'est Toi Jeans (CTJ), and owner Si Oh Rhew, of La Canada Flintridge, and his son, Lance Rhew, of Los Angeles, a CTJ corporate officer who owns another company that did business with CTJ, were the subjects of a 35-count indictment from a federal grand jury, the Department of Justice said. The charges include “conspiracy; entry of goods falsely classified; entry of goods by means of false statements; passing false and fraudulent papers through customhouse.”
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published its fall 2020 regulatory agenda for CBP. The agenda includes no new trade actions.
The U.S. and Ecuador signed a phase one trade agreement that goes beyond the World Trade Organization's Trade Facilitation Agreement with requirements for online publication of customs information and customs brokers requirements; duties and fees; electronic submission of customs declaration and phytosanitary certificates; a single window for import and export; and advanced rulings that cover classification, valuation, origin, and application of quotas. Ecuador also agreed to no penalties on minor errors, unless they're part of a consistent pattern, and a procedure to correct errors without penalties.
A former jewelry importer will pay more than $400,000 to settle a False Claims Act whistleblower lawsuit that alleges it intentionally misclassified imported earrings to avoid paying higher customs duties, the Justice Department said in a Dec. 8 news release. A TSI Accessories Group subsidiary allegedly classified the earrings based on the value of pairs or larger groups, when they should have been classified based on the value of each single earring, said the whistleblower complaint, subsequently joined by the Justice Department.
The U.S. and Ecuador signed a phase one trade agreement that goes beyond the World Trade Organization's Trade Facilitation Agreement with requirements for online publication of customs information and customs brokers requirements; duties and fees; electronic submission of customs declaration and phytosanitary certificates; a single window for import and export; and advanced rulings that cover classification, valuation, origin, and application of quotas. Ecuador also agreed to no penalties on minor errors, unless they're part of a consistent pattern, and a procedure to correct errors without penalties.