The Court of International Trade on Jan. 21 ordered a Louisiana company to pay a $10,000 fine, plus interest, for transacting customs business without a license (here). The court found Freight Forwarder International (FFI) paid duties and fees on behalf of its clients. While the company had a licensed customs broker on staff, the company itself wasn’t licensed as a corporation, ruled CIT.
The Department of Homeland Security should continue to prioritize efforts toward completing the International Trade Data System, a group of trade associations said in a letter to DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson (here). "Modernizing these government processes allows affected agencies to streamline operations and eliminate unnecessary time and costs from inefficient programs and procedures while protecting our borders," said the groups, including the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Business Alliance for Customs Modernization. "To ensure accountability, the appropriate metrics should be established and we recommend the creation of an implementation committee with equal representation from industry and government to move forward with 21st century solutions."
The Advisory Committee on Commercial Operations (COAC) for CBP will next meet on Feb. 11 in San Francisco, CBP said in a notice (here). Recommendations for CBP on regulating customs brokers' collection of importer bona fides information are among the agenda items planned for the meeting. A COAC group previously put off making recommendations on the subject while the agency developed a proposal on a new Form 5106 (see 13111801). CBP proposed revisions to the form in October (see 14100815).
Republican lawmakers are considering revisions to Trade Promotion Authority to broaden its appeal across the aisle in both chambers of Congress, and a TPA bill is likely to be introduced before the beginning of March, said the third-ranking Republican in the Senate, John Thune, R-S.D., on Jan. 7. A number of observers in recent days corroborated that prediction, saying TPA proponents on Capitol Hill want to get the legislative process moving for the bill before Congress takes up budget bills in March (see 1501040001).
The U.S. and Mexico will continue to work together to harmonize customs processing, and the two countries will also open three new border facilities in the near future, said a joint statement following a Jan. 6 meeting of the U.S.-Mexico High Level Economic Dialogue (here). The White House released another fact sheet earlier in the day on bilateral economic and trade relations (see 1501060011). Both sides will continue to work to build the new facilities at the West Rail Bypass between Matamoros, Mexico and Brownsville; the Guadalupe-Tornillo Port of Entry on the border between the Chihuahua state in Mexico and Texas; and the Tijuana Airport Pedestrian Facility, said the joint statement. The U.S. and Mexico are also aiming for progress on the proposed Otay II border crossing in the Tijuana-San Diego border region, it said. Further, both sides plan to implement an air services agreement, brokered in November 2014, after each approval process is completed, the statement added.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for 2014 in case they were missed.
CBP's proposed changes to its Importer ID Input Record (Form 5106) threaten to slow the flow of goods when using a non-resident Importer of Record (NRIOR), said the Northern Border Customs Brokers Association (NBCBA) in comments to CBP on the proposal. The new requirements would especially cause problems for Canadian NRIORs by requiring address descriptions, and any such changes should follow consultation with Canada, the group said. The American Apparel and Footwear Association also said it is concerned with the changes and asked the agency to withdraw the proposal.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Dec. 15-19 in case they were missed.
The Food and Drug Administration’s revised Foreign Supplier Verification Program proposal is a step in the right direction, but there are still ambiguous and burdensome requirements that need to be ironed out, according to several trade associations in comments on FDA’s September supplemental proposed rule. Several sets of comments, including from the Association of American Exporters and Importers, the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America, and the Cheese Importers Association of America, continued to highlight identification of the “FSVP Importer” tasked with complying with FSVP as a main concern.
The April customs broker’s license examination is scheduled for Monday, April 13, as expected (1412080025), said CBP in an official notice (here). While usually scheduled for the first Monday in April, the first Monday coincides with the observance of the religious holiday of Passover, said CBP. The exam typically consists of 80 multiple-choice questions, with a score of 75 percent required to pass.