SAN ANTONIO -- The Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security and the Census Bureau hope to issue their long-awaited proposed regulations on routed export transactions in late spring or early summer, said Sharron Cook, senior policy export analyst at BIS, at the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America's annual conference April 17. When they come out, Cook thinks, export forwarders will see two of their bigger headaches with the current regulations on track for resolution.
SAN ANTONIO -- CBP is combing through its export processes to streamline, automate and harmonize agency review, exams and penalties across the ports, according to Jim Swanson, director of CBP’s cargo and security controls division. Speaking at the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America's annual conference April 17, Swanson said CBP has “incrementally moved the ball” on exports in the past year, but is “on the verge” with “a few things we’re working on diligently.”
SAN ANTONIO -- CBP is looking at using "prescriptive analytics" as a way of making the rulings process faster, said Brenda Smith, CBP executive assistant commissioner-trade, at the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America's annual conference on April 17. Such analytics involve a review of the data that "puts out a couple of options for action," she said. While "we don't want a machine doing classification," CBP would like to use technology to improve efficiency on rulings, she said.
SAN ANTONIO -- CBP is already testing multiple suggestions put forth as part of the agency's effort to update its framework, said Brenda Smith, CBP executive assistant commissioner-trade, on April 17 at the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America's annual conference. For example, the agency is "investing in cognitive analytics to protect U.S. business from unfair or illicit trade through more effective risk assessment and targeting," she said. CBP is also working at "providing better data out of ACE," she said.
SAN ANTONIO -- Increasing levels of manual review for filers of Food and Drug Administration regulated goods that fail evaluations should act as a deterrent for non-compliant filers and encourage them to correct issues quickly, said Alex Lopez, director-compliance at FDA’s Division of Southwest Imports, on a panel at the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America's annual conference on April 17.
APHIS Still in Planning Phases for Mandatory APHIS Core in ACE, Will Set Up Help Desk for Transition
SAN ANTONIO -- The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service will set up a range of outreach options, including a help desk, to assist importers, customs brokers and software developers with the upcoming mandatory use of the APHIS “Core” partner government agency message set in ACE, said Dr. Vivek Kamath of APHIS at the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America's annual conference April 16. The agency is still in the “planning phases” for the move and the “final timeline is not yet decided,” Kamath said.
SAN ANTONIO -- CBP is hoping to publish a rule on the testing of the new Entry Type 86 for low value shipments in the fall, said Thomas Overacker, CBP executive director, Cargo and Conveyance Security, on April 17 at the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America's annual conference. The Entry Type 86 is meant as a means to provide information to the Partner Government Agencies on goods that are eligible for the Section 321 exemptions. "This data will also give us an opportunity for great risk segmentation," he said.
SAN ANTONIO -- Non-vessel operators (NVOs) should be working with their customers to minimize any surprises coming from the implementation of revised International Maritime Organization sulfur emissions standards in 2020, said transportation industry experts during a panel discussion at the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America's annual conference on April 16.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for April 8-12 in case they were missed.
SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- A lawsuit challenging the new CBP drawback regulations that limit drawback on goods subject to excise taxes (see 1812190011) is expected soon, Sandler Travis lawyer Michael Cerny said on a panel at the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America's annual conference on April 16. CBP is saying "the export of excise-tax-free goods is considered a drawback, therefore you can't get a second drawback of that through substitution," Cerny said. "This is going to be challenged," and he said he expects a lawsuit within "the next few weeks." The excise tax changes became effective on Feb. 19, 2019.