U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has updated its 18-page document entitled "Operating Procedures for Implementation of the Wood Packaging Materials Regulation" which focuses on the procedures that need to be followed under Phase III, full enforcement of the wood packaging material (WPM) regulation, which began July 5, 2006.
CBP CROSS Rulings
CBP issues binding advance rulings in connection with the importation of merchandise into the United States. They issue the rulings to give the trade community transparency of how CBP will treat a prospective import or carrier transaction. Common rulings include the tariff classification, country of origin, or free trade agreement applicability of merchandise, among other things. These rulings are available in CBP's Customs Rulings Online Search System (CROSS) database.
Shippers' NewsWire reports that although the U.S. is disappointed by World Trade Organization (WTO) deadlock on agricultural trade, it has pledged to continue its efforts to liberalize global agricultural trade and reduce barriers to industrial goods. (American Shipper Pub 07/03/06, www.americanshipper.com.)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued two notices on the CAFTA-DR tariff rate quotas (TRQs) that are in effect for the July 1, 2006 - December 31, 2006 period for certain "qualifying" agricultural products (including sugar) from Guatemala.
In the June 14, 2006 issue of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Bulletin (CBP Bulletin) (Vol. 40, No. 25), CBP issued a notice revoking a ruling concerning NAFTA country of origin marking ruling on plastic storage bags. CBP states that it is also revoking any treatment it has previously accorded to substantially identical transactions.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a revised version of its informed compliance publication (ICP) entitled, What Every Member of the Trade Community Should Know About: Peanuts and their Classification under the HTSUS.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a revised version of its informed compliance publication (ICP) entitled, What Every Member of the Trade Community Should Know About: Caviar.
The Journal of Commerce reports that Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials expect the new U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) commissioner, W. Ralph Basham, will move forward with the much-heralded Secure Freight Initiative, the department's next-generation initiative for acquiring trade data from multiple sources for risk-assessment and targeting. (See ITT's Online Archives or 07/14/05 and 06/23/06 news, 05071405 and 06062305, for previous BP summaries on the Secure Freight Initiative) (JoC, 06/19/06, www.joc.com )
In February 2006, two members of the trade community prepared a pamphlet entitled "Trade User's Guide for ACE-ESAR Release A2," in order to help current ABI/ACS customs brokers, self-filers, and their automation vendors focus on significant changes they might experience as ACE ESAR (Entry Summary, Accounts, Revenue, also referred to as ACE Release 5) is rolled out.
The International Trade Administration (ITA) has issued a proposed rule that would add a new 19 CFR Part 358 in order establish procedures for importation of supplies for use in emergency relief work free of antidumping (AD) and countervailing (CV) duties.
The Journal of Commerce reports that U.S. Customs and Border Protection is considering requiring an additional ten extra pieces of data from importers, and two extra pieces of data from carriers, for advance cargo manifest purposes. The article adds that CBP will publish a proposed rule on filing these additional data elements (which may include names of addresses of buyers and sellers, where the container is stuffed, and country of origin) in "the not too distant" future. (JoC, 06/12/06, www.joc.com )