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Due to Pandemic, BIS Providing Six-Month Export License Extensions

posted by Jennifer Diaz November 24, 2020 0 comments

Co-Authored by Sharath Patil

BIS’ Announcement

Last month, the U.S. Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry & Security (“BIS”) announced that it is providing six-month extensions for export license applications due to economic difficulties associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result of this announcement, BIS is permitting exporters to request six-month validity period extensions for licenses due to expire on or before December 31, 2020. BIS accepts all submission requests in one central electronic mailbox: LicenseExtensionRequest@bis.doc.gov. When a party submits a license extension request, BIS will review the original license and (in most cases), extend the validity of the license by six months. BIS estimates that the majority of extension validity requests will be processed and approved within two to three business days. Acting Under Secretary for Industry and Security Corden Hull said, “The streamlined process will help ensure that exporters with licenses due to expire on or before the end of 2020, who may not have been able to ship orders due to resource constraints during the pandemic, have the opportunity to benefit fully from the authorizations granted on their licenses.”

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HOUSEHOLD GOODS AND SERVICES PROVIDERS – WHAT YOU MUST KNOW.

posted by Jennifer Diaz November 10, 2020 0 comments

In the household goods and services industry? Did you know you have to import your goods and services in compliance with the Bureau of Household Goods and Services (BHGS) regulations? Manufacturers or wholesalers of any article of upholstered furniture bedding, or filling material manufactured outside of the United States for the purpose of sale or resale in California, whether it be through employees or agents, fall within this category.

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President Calls for Greater Enforcement Against Counterfeit Imports

posted by Jennifer Diaz November 5, 2020 0 comments

Co-Authored by Sharath Patil

What Happened

On October 13, 2020, President Trump issued a Presidential Memorandum on stopping counterfeit trafficking on e-commerce platforms. The memorandum called for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) to “impose the maximum fines and civil penalties permitted by law on any e-commerce platform that directs, assists with, or is in any way concerned in the importation into the United States of counterfeit goods.” Furthermore, the memorandum also called for:

CBP to continue seizing counterfeit goods imported into the United States in connection with e-commerce transactions
Congress to pass laws that clarify and strengthen the president’s authority and increase its resources to address e-commerce-linked counterfeit trafficking
The U.S. Attorney General to develop a legislative proposal to promote the policy objectives of the memorandum within 120 of its publication

Best Practices BIS China China Trade War Customs Expert Enforcement Export Import Import Alert International Law International Trade International Travel Trade War U.S.Customs

BIS Expands Export Restrictions Targeting China’s Largest Chipmaker

posted by Jennifer Diaz October 27, 2020 1 Comment

Co-Authored by Sharath Patil

Last week, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry & Security (“BIS”) informed some U.S. semiconductor manufacturers via a confidential letter that they would require export licenses before exporting certain products to China’s largest semiconductor manufacturer, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (“SMIC”). Although the letter is not available for public view, a September 28, 2020 Wall Street Journal article that broke the story said that the Commerce Department was concerned about high risks of diversion to a military end use. This additional export license requirement is part of a broader pattern of increased export restrictions, particularly to China.

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LIST 3 Exclusion Updates

posted by Jennifer Diaz October 26, 2020 0 comments

On June 24, 2019, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) provided the public with an exclusion process for items included subjected to Section 301 Tariffs. Specifically, the exclusions related to products included on List 3, which went into effect on September 24, 2018.

Originally, List 3 imposed 10 percent ad valorem duties on 5,757 full and partial subheadings of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) and had an annual trade value of $200 Billion. Months later, in May 2019, the 10 percent ad valorem duties were increased to 25 percent. Continue Reading

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List 4 Exclusion Update

posted by Jennifer Diaz October 23, 2020 0 comments

On June 26, July 17, and August 11, 2020, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) requested the public to submit comments regarding potential product exclusion extensions for items subject to Section 301 Tariffs. This comment period specifically applied to products that were included on List 4.

When the list was announced on August 20, 2019, it imposed a 10 percent ad valorem on 3,805 full and partial subheadings of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), with an annual trade value of approximately $300 billion. Then, on August 30, 2019, USTR increased the rate of the additional duty announced in the August 20 notice from 10 to 15 percent. Finally, on January 22, 2020, USTR determined to reduce the rate from 15 to 7.5 percent. Continue Reading

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Diaz Trade Law Now Filing List 4A Complaints – Join Section 301 Refund Lawsuit Now to Demand Refunds

posted by Jennifer Diaz October 22, 2020 1 Comment

301 Lawsuit Background

In mid-September, a coalition of importers filed a Court challenge to the USTR’s imposition of Section 301 duties on certain imports from China under Lists 3 and 4. These duties were imposed as part of a process purportedly intended to address intellectual property abuses by China. Specifically, this coalition has claimed that these duties were imposed contrary to law and ignored the statutory deadlines in Section 301. Further, the coalition has argued that these duties were not imposed in response to the intellectual property violations alleged in the initiation notice, but rather were filed in response to the retaliatory tariffs enacted by China. Accordingly, the coalition argues, such tariffs were void from the initial imposition.

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Maritime Industry Rocked by Cyber Attacks

posted by Jennifer Diaz October 20, 2020 0 comments

Co-Authored by Sharath Patil

The maritime industry has been rocked by a string of cyber-attacks in recent weeks. Two of the most severe incidents involved the United Nation’s shipping agency, the International Maritime Organization (“IMO”), and the French shipping company CMA GCM S.A. (“CMA GCM”). These attacks remind the shipping industry about the dangers of such attacks and the importance of cybersecurity compliance. From a trade and customs perspective, such incidents trigger post incident analysis and other measures as part of the U.S. Customs & Border Protection’s (“CBP”) Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism Minimum Security Criteria. We will discuss two of the most severe cyber-attack incidents in recent weeks below and then discuss the trade and customs implications of such attacks.

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Using WROs to Fight Forced Labor

posted by Jennifer Diaz October 13, 2020 0 comments

Forced Labor is the third most lucrative illicit trade, behind only drugs and weapons, and has an annual trade value of roughly $150 Billion. Right now, over 40 million people around the world are victims of some type of forced labor, including modern slavery, human trafficking, etc.

Thankfully, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has been working to curb this inhumane practice.

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NEW LIST 2- SECTION 301 EXTENSIONS

posted by Jennifer Diaz October 1, 2020 1 Comment

On June 25, 2020, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), requested the public to submit comments regarding potential product exclusion extensions for items subject to Section 301 Tariffs. This comment period specifically applied to products that were included on List 2, which went into effect on August 23, 2018.

List 2 imposed 25 percent additional duties on 279 eight-digit subheadings of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) and had an annual trade value of $16 Billion.

On September 18, 2018, USTR provided the public with an exclusion process; then September 2019, USTR granted a number of exclusions that were set to expire on September 20, 2020. In the June 25^th Notice, commenters were asked a variety of questions relating to their supply chains, such as…

whether the particular product and/or a comparable product is available from sources in the United States and/or in third countries; any changes in the global supply chain since August 2018 with respect to the particular product, or any other relevant industry developments; and efforts, if any, importers or U.S. purchasers have undertaken since August 2018 to source the product from the United States or third countries.

The June 25th announcement was made via federal register notice and stated that requests for exclusion extensions were to be submitted no later than July 30, 2020. Less than three months later, on September 22, 2020, USTR announced its determination to extend certain exclusions through the end of the year. Although USTR could have extended the exclusions for up to 12 months, these exclusions are effective as of September 20, 2020, and will now expire on December 31, 2020.

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