The United Kingdom released a report Oct. 7 on the comments received from its freeports consultation (see 2004080020) and outlined its plans for the project, including measures surrounding customs operations, taxes and other “policy considerations.” The report said responses were “generally” positive about the proposed customs model for freeports, which will include “simplified declaration procedures” but remain focused on targeting illegal trade. The U.K. said it will continue compliance checks on goods entering freeport areas and touched on a range of other issues in the 48-page document, including freeport operators, trade remedies and value-added taxes. The document also summarizes questions it asked commenters during the consultation period. The U.K. said it will soon launch a “bidding process” to determine freeport locations.
The United Kingdom’s Department for International Trade issued guidance Oct. 7 for procurement opportunities for U.K. business after the country's European Union exit takes effect Jan. 1, 2021. The guidance provides information for bidding on procurement opportunities under the Government Procurement Agreement and the U.K.'s trade agreements.
Switzerland launched a campaign to target illegal imports of medical masks after seeing an increase in “non-conforming” masks entering the country, its Federal Customs Administration said in an Oct. 6 notice. The campaign, completed earlier this year, included inspections on 29 shipments containing more than 34 million face masks. About one-third of the shipments didn't conform, Switzerland said, with deficiencies including missing conformity markings on packaging, missing addresses, incomplete information on the packaging, a lack of test results that proved the masks were conforming and masks that were not tested in an “accredited” laboratory. The campaign resulted in five “administrative proceedings” by Switzerland Customs, including a ban on certain mask shipments. “The results of the operation showed that fairly large quantities of non-conforming medical face masks were circulating on the Swiss market,” the notice said.
A United Kingdom Department for International Trade defense and security export statistics report for 2019, released Oct. 6, includes information on the number of U.K. defense and security exports last year, total value of exports and export destinations.
The United Kingdom will apply a tariff rate quota on imports of certain steel imports from certain countries after Brexit, the U.K. said in a Sept. 30 notice. The TRQ will apply to a range of steel products, including metallic coated sheets, stainless wire rods, railway material, gas pipes and non-alloy wire. The U.K. published a document containing the product categories, their commodity codes and the TRQs for each country.
The United Kingdom’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation on Sept. 28 released its quarterly report, covering Jan. 1 to March 31, 2020, on its sanctions regimes. The report contains OFSI’s sanctions statistics, including the number of accounts the agency has frozen, the total value of funds it has blocked, the number of new designations last quarter and other licensing statistics.
The European Commission issued a notice Sept. 16 on European Union dual-use export controls if the United Kingdom leaves the EU without a deal. The commission reminded dual-use traders that items exported from the EU to the U.K. will require a license after the transition period, which ends Dec. 31, and traders will no longer be able to rely on U.K. licenses for shipments from the EU to a third country. Traders also will not be able to rely on licenses issued by another EU member state to export dual-use goods located in the U.K. to a third country. The EC advised exporters to seek information from their country’s licensing authority “regarding the handling of relevant export scenarios” post-transition.
The United Kingdom is seeking comments, due Oct. 5, on the future of its autonomous tariff rate quota for raw cane sugar after it officially leaves the European Union next year, the U.K.’s Department for International Trade said Sept. 14. It wants feedback on whether the U.K. should impose a tariff rate quota, the “volume of an ATQ” that industry would prefer, if at all, and the quota's impact on industry sectors or businesses in the U.K.
The United Kingdom’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation on Sept. 9 renewed two designations under its terrorism and terrorist financing sanctions regime. OFSI renewed the designations for Colombia's Ejercito de Liberacion Nacional (National Liberation Army) and Peru's Communist Party, Sendero Luminoso, also known as Shining Path.
The United Kingdom’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation corrected an entry under its sanctions for Guinea-Bissau, OFSI said Sept. 9. The correction amends the entry for Col. Tomas Djassi, commander of Guinea-Bissau’s National Guard. Djassi remains subject to an asset freeze.