USMCA Certificate Template Not Yet Ready; Confusion Continues for Auto Parts Makers
Although lawmakers thought eliminating the NAFTA certificate would be helpful, some importers are more comfortable with structure, so there will be a certificate template available on CBP's trade agreements web page “as soon as possible,” Adam Sulewski, USMCA Center project leader at CBP, said during a conference call June 29. He reminded importers, “We can accept those required nine data elements in any form.”
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The replacement for NAFTA, the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, takes effect July 1, though importers will not be required to produce the information that would be on a certificate on day one.
Traders on the call wondered if they need to put the “S” marker for USMCA even if the item would be unconditionally duty-free from another country. The answer is yes.
The most confusion is around the auto industry. One trader asked what if the car was manufactured before July 1. It's not the date of manufacture that matters, but the date of entry. But even the date of entry can be complicated, since that can be when the good is released by CBP; when the entry documentation is filed, if the good is already in port; or, if information was submitted before arrival, when the good arrives in port.
As long as the good enters on or before June 30, 2020, however, the NAFTA rules continue to apply, all the way through liquidation.
One trade professional told CBP officials that auto vehicle manufacturers are telling parts suppliers that they do not need to track their aluminum and steel purchases or the wages paid to their assembly-line workers.
Sulewski said that's not true, because as CBP later seeks to enforce the labor value content and the steel and aluminum procurement for finished vehicles, they will need to know about the inputs to the cars and trucks. “Contractually, businesses are going to need to get additional information from their subcontractors and sub-subcontractors,” he said.
Later, a trader asked what if a company that makes auto parts doesn't sell to an automaker, but sells to a Tier 1 parts supplier who sells to the automaker? Do they have to track their wages and metal purchases? The CBP officials said they'd have to look into that.
Another importer asked whether the duty-free status could apply to a Canada-made car that is being imported as a used car, so the importer would not be able to certify from the producer that the USMCA (or past NAFTA) standards were met? CBP said it realizes this is an issue, but believes there hasn't been a policy decision yet on how to handle it.