![Polyester Staple Fiber](https://geodis.widen.net/content/yyokbsskqz/web/Customs%20Corner%20-%20Polyester%20Staple%20Fiber%20darkened.jpeg?crop=yes&k=c&w=768&h=1024&itok=5Y-bCo9_)
08/16/2024
ITC Proposes Absolute Quotas on Polyester Fiber Imports to Protect U.S. Industry
Check out this week's Customs Corner to read about the absolute quota on polyester fiber imports, the Harmonized System Update, and more.
1) ITC Proposes Absolute Quotas on Polyester Fiber Imports to Protect U.S. Industry
The International Trade Commission (ITC) is recommending that President Joe Biden impose a tariff-rate quota (TRQ) and an absolute quota on imports of polyester staple fiber as safeguard measures under Section 201. The TRQ would allow a specific quantity of polyester staple fiber to be imported at lower tariffs, with higher tariffs applied to any imports beyond this quota. The absolute quota on temporary imports under bond would start at zero and increase gradually over four years.
The ITC’s recommendation follows a finding that these imports harm the U.S. industry. All four ITC commissioners advised that the quotas should last four years, with detailed provisions for quota amounts and tariff rates. They also suggested an exclusion process for fibers in short supply.
While free trade agreement countries like Canada and Mexico would generally be excluded from these measures, some commissioners proposed that South Korea should not be excluded from the absolute quota. Additionally, two commissioners recommended that the administration seek congressional support for a law to permanently ban certain imports to avoid duties and to support programs for downstream users affected by these measures.
President Biden will make the final decision on whether to implement these recommendations and what form the relief will take.
2) Harmonized System Update Issued August 14, 2024
Harmonized System Update (HSU) 2412 was created on August 13, 2024, and contains 1000 harmonized tariff records and 4,158 ABI records.
HSU 2412 includes several updates to PGA HTS flag indicator for AMS (AM7) and adjustments required by the verification of the 2024 Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS).
Questions or concerns for PGA HTS Flagging should be emailed to [email protected].
Questions or concerns with the Harmonized System Update should be directed to HTS admin at [email protected]
3) Title: CSMS # 61767998 - Update to U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Core PGA Message Set Implementation Guide Document
The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Core PGA Message Set Implementation Guide (Version 6.1) has been updated and placed in the ‘Draft Chapters: Future Capabilities’ section of CBP.gov located here: https://www.cbp.gov/trade/ace/catair.
Please review the table of changes, which include the transition updates to be made that were communicated in CSMS 61753384 Update to ACE CERTIFICATION and PRODUCTION Deployment Dates related to U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) (August 12, 2024).
The USDA-APHIS Message Set support desk is available at [email protected], or by phone at 1-833-481-2102 if you have questions.
National Commodity Specialist Division (NCSD) Webinars: September 2024 Schedule Now Available
CSMS # 61804588 -
U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) National Commodity Specialist Division (NCSD) is excited to present the next round of approximately 30+ commodity-specific, educational webinars to support internal and external stakeholders. This year the NCSD intends to focus the webinars on Greening the Tariff, providing guidance on the classification of sustainable products and environmentally friendly practices in addition to our general tariff training.
CBP is now registering attendees for the webinars scheduled for September and will proceed with monthly registrations for the remaining webinars. CBP will use the WebEx platform, which will help provide a seamless participation experience The NCSD looks forward to your participation for an exciting and successful webinar series!
The September schedule is as follows:
- Wednesday September 4 , 1:30pm ET - Go, Go Green! The Tariff, The History and The Future of Vehicles
- Thursday September 5, 1:30pm ET - It’s Time We Had That Talk About Cocoa
The full 2024 schedule for the Greening the Tariff Series is linked above.
You can access all past webinar recordings on the Trade Outreach Webinars page here: https://www.cbp.gov/trade/stakeholder-engagement/webinars.
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