U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a proposed rule that would amend 19 CFR Part 181 to clarify that to claim the Merchandise Processing Fee (MPF) exemption for unconditionally free goods from a North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) country1, an importer of an originating good must place the appropriate special program indicator (SPI "CA" or "MX" as appropriate) opposite the good on the entry form, even though the importer does not need to claim a NAFTA duty preference.
Customs duty
A customs duty is a tariff or tax which a country imposes on goods when they are transported across international borders. Customs Duties are used to protect countries' economies, residents, jobs, and environments, by limiting the flow of imported merchandise, especially restricted and prohibited goods, into the country. The Customs duty rate is a percentage determined by the value of the article purchased in the foreign country and not based on quality, size, or weight. U.S. customs duties are listed in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) has issued a notice announcing the results of the 2005 annual product review and tariff determination for imports of certain Chilean fruits, vegetables, and juices, as set forth in the U.S.-Chile Free Trade Agreement (CFTA or UCFTA).
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued an ABI administrative message advising the trade on the ABI system requirements for the Certificate of Eligibility for the CAFTA-DR1 Tariff Preference Level (TPL)2 for Nicaragua apparel entered under HTS 9915.61.01.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a new informed compliance publication (ICP) entitled, What Every Member of the Trade Community Should Know About: Coffee
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has posted to its Web site two notices announcing that effective August 9, 2006, adjustments to the ACS quota module for the U.S.-Bahrain Free Trade Agreement (BFTA) have been made, and as a result field offices may now process BFTA entries through the ACS quota module.
The International Trade Commission (ITC) has issued a final report to the President in connection with its investigation of proposed modifications to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) that are expected to take effect on January 1, 2007.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) has issued a notice announcing that it is requesting public input as to the probable effect of modifications to the U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SFTA) which would accelerate the planned reduction of duties on certain articles and modify the rule of origin for one article.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a memorandum to the ports on the beef export certificate required for imports of beef from Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, and Uruguay, entered under the low-duty tariff rate quota (TRQ) in HTS Chapter 2, Additional U.S. Note 3.
On July 28, 2006, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 4, the Pension Protection Act of 2006. On August 3, 2006, the Senate passed, without amendment, the House-passed version of H.R. 4, clearing the bill for the President.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued to the ports and posted to its Web site instructions regarding (1) the use of visas to make claims for duty-free treatment under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) for qualifying textile and/or apparel articles (textile articles) from Burkina Faso that are entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after August 4, 2006, and (2) quota reporting for certain apparel articles from Burkina Faso that are subject to the AGOA aggregate tariff preference level (TPL or Cap) and its sublimit.