Recent changes to Customs’ Drawback Program have earned the participation of formerly skeptical customs compliance managers and individual importers, leading to millions of dollars in refunds for the drawback of import duties, fees, and for some products, taxes. Drawback is the refund, under certain circumstances, of 99 percent of the duties and specified…
The longest continuous US trade embargo has been in effect on Cuba since the corrupt communist Castro brothers took over the island nation in 1959, or 61 years ago. While there are Bureau of Industry & Security (“BIS”) export license exceptions for the export to Cuba of certain agricultural products (AGR), specified communications and computer…
Developed after the 9/11 attacks, the Trusted Traveler Programs of US CBP and TSA (Global Entry, TSA Pre✓®, SENTRI, NEXUS, and FAST) are risk-based programs to facilitate the entry of pre-approved travelers and in some cases, cargo shipments. All applicants are vetted to ensure that they meet the qualifications for the program to which they are…
A case filed on September 10th has causes a cascade of filings in the Court of International Trade in the past few days. The HMTX case, brought by an importer of vinyl tile from China, challenges the procedures used by the Administration in imposing 25 percent added tariffs on goods in Lists 3 and 4A. …
NAFTA’s replacement, the USMCA, which went into effect July 1st, makes two major changes in different de minimis allowances that were recognized when NAFTA went into effect in 1994. By de minimis, we mean an item of minimal or insignificant amount, value or impact. The first de minimis benefit involves cross-border shipments of low-value goods…
Given the ongoing trade dispute with China, there is a widespread view that the US dare not upset the apple cart with our largest trading partner. But China is not our largest trading partner, nor are they second. They are third, and their inherent position of weakness is evident in the statistics – China maintains…
The Bureau of Industry & Security (“BIS”) of the Commerce Department has jurisdiction over 90+ percent of product exports from the United States. U.S. exporters shipping products otherwise subject to an BIS export license requirement by virtue of their classification under an ECCN are often able to rely on License Exceptions, which eliminate the need…
Foreign trade zones in the United States account for some 10 percent of overall US imports. But FTZs are not used only in the U.S. but are in most countries worldwide. The common concept of a free trade zone or foreign trade zone (FTZ) is that is a designated location in a secured area outside…
Incoterms, short for “international commercial terms”, are shorthand for the allocation of cargo transportation costs and risks of loss between parties to an international sales transactions. At the outset, it must be pointed out what Incoterms are NOT – they do not set prices, quality standards for quantities of sale between. They do not provide…
Due to continuing political repression in Hong Kong by the Chinese government, the Trump Administration has retaliated against China by taking substantive, though not overwhelming, retaliatory actions against products from Hong Kong. U.S. goods and services trade with Hong Kong totaled an estimated $66.9 billion in 2018. Exports were $50.1 billion; imports were $16.8 billion. … merchandise exports…