CBP Issues FAQs on Controlled PPE Exports

CBP issued frequently asked questions about exports of personal protective equipment, detailing how exporters submit letters of attestation; how exporters will be notified of held shipments; the resolution process on disagreements surrounding restricted shipments; and more, according to an April 27 CMS message. The guidance comes about one week after the Federal Emergency Management Agency issued 10 exemptions for exports of PPE (see 2004200019). FEMA expects to issue most determinations on PPE shipments within two days (see 2004210022).

In its FAQs, CBP said exporters will be notified, “most likely” through their carrier, if their export is detained for inspections. Shipments “should be considered cleared to export” if exporters do not receive “negative information or notification” regarding their export. CBP said it prefers receiving letters of attestation through its document imaging system as opposed to email, because letters in DIS “can be submitted early enough to allow review without supply chain interruption for qualifying shipments.”

Because there is no Automated Export System data for exports to Canada, CBP will accept letters of attestation to Canada-bound shipments through voluntary filings in AES with a DIS attachment, among other methods. CBP also said “early filings … of supporting documents” will help speed up shipments, and “shipments should be reported as soon as possible even if the AES filing needs to be later amended prior to export.”

The agency added that it does not intend to target controlled PPE “already exported overseas,” but “each case is individually reviewed and a shipment may require return.” In cases in which there is a “disagreement” between the carrier “regarding applicability of the memo/rule to a specific shipment,” the agency said the U.S. government will make the final ruling. “Ultimately, the FEMA Administrator and other senior US Government officials make the final determination if the shipment will be diverted back into US commerce or allocated by the government,” CBP said.