Newly Released CBP HQ Rulings April 29
The Customs Rulings Online Search System (CROSS) was updated April 29 with the following headquarters rulings (ruling revocations and modifications will be detailed elsewhere in a separate article as they are announced in the Customs Bulletin):
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H335827: Valuation of Precious Metal Bars; Formula; Price Actually Paid or Payable; Transaction Value
| Ruling: (1) The final price that EMA will pay to the supplier is determined according to an acceptable formula such that it constitutes the “price actually paid or payable” for purposes of the transaction value method. (2) EMA may report any price adjustments through the ACE Reconciliation Program. |
| Issue: (1) Whether the final price that EMA will pay to the supplier is determined according to an acceptable formula such that it constitutes the “price actually paid or payable” for purposes of the transaction value method. (2) Whether the ACE Reconciliation Program is an appropriate method for making any price adjustments required to align the provisional price with the price determined by application of the formula. |
| Item: EMA Professional Services Corporation will purchase and import precious metal bars consisting primarily of platinum group metals sourced from suppliers in South Africa, the United Arab Emirates, and other countries. EMA will make entry using an initial, provisional purchase price determined by two factors: (1) the supplier’s pre-importation preliminary analysis of the bars’ precious metal content; and (2) the spot price on the London Commodity Market of the precious metals contained in the bars. Because EMA anticipates that the actual metal content could differ from the supplier’s pre-importation preliminary analysis, it plans to carry out sampling and analysis of the bars once they arrive in the U.S. On the day it receives the test results, EMA will offer the supplier a final price based on the results of this post-importation sampling and analysis and the spot price of metal on the London Commodity Market as of that date. EMA proposes to report any upward or downward price adjustment to CBP via the ACE Reconciliation Program. |
| Reason: (1) The importer has established a valid formula for purposes of determining the price actually paid or payable. The final price that EMA will pay is determined before the merchandise is imported and ultimately depends on an objective standard -- specifically, the relevant price on the London Commodity Market on the date that EMA receives the test results. Neither EMA nor the supplier can influence or control this price. As a result, the final price is determined according to an acceptable formula such that it constitutes the “price actually paid or payable” for purposes of the transaction value method. (2) Although the importer is not required to participate in the Reconciliation Program, it would be an acceptable way to report any price adjustments required under the pricing formula discussed above. |
| Ruling Date: April 19, 2024 |