On November 19, 2004, the Senate passed the conference version of H.R. 1047, the Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act of 2004. The House passed the conference version of H.R. 1047 on October 8, 2004. The conference version of H.R. 1047 has now been cleared for the White House.
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.
CBP has posted to its Web site its "critical list" of textiles and apparel subject to import quotas with entered quantities 85% or more filled as of November 29, 2004. CBP states that this "critical list" may be used by CBP as a reference for releasing quota merchandise "off line" when the Automated Commercial System (ACS) is down for longer than four hours. CBP notes that textile and apparel merchandise for Electronic Visa Information System (ELVIS) countries cannot be released "off line" until it is processed through quota. CBP further notes that if the system is down for more than 24 hours, Headquarters Quota Branch should be contacted for further instructions. CBP also states that merchandise subject to tariff-rate quotas (TRQs) that are filled, may be released if entered under the "over quota" (high) rate of duty. (CBP's critical list, dated 11/29/04, available at http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/import/textiles_and_quotas/textile_critical_list/)
On November 19, 2004, the Senate passed the conference version of H.R. 1047, the Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act of 2004. The House passed the conference version of H.R. 1047 on October 8, 2004. The conference version of H.R. 1047 has now been cleared for the White House.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has posted to its Web site a notice which outlines the procedures that must be followed when processing quota-class merchandise under the Pre-Arrival Processing System (PAPS).
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) has issued a press release announcing that on November 17, 2004, the U.S. and Australia exchanged diplomatic notes certifying that each country has completed its internal requirements to allow the U.S.-Australia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to enter into force on January 1, 2005.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued three ABI administrative messages announcing that the Automated Commercial System (ACS) is being modified to accept certificate numbers in the entry summary record identifier 52 record (input) in the miscellaneous permit/license number field (positions 30-38) when a claim is made under the following:
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued an administrative message to ABI filers stating that there are additional edits in place at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding Phase 5 of the FDA/Bioterrorism Act (BTA) program for prior notice (PN) of imported food, resulting in additional rejects of PN transmissions.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has posted a third set of frequently asked questions (FAQs) and responses (dated 10/27/04) to its Web page regarding the January 1, 2005 full integration (elimination of quotas) for textiles and textile apparel originating in countries that are members of the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) has issued a proposed rule that would provide an exemption from the tariff publication requirements of the Shipping Act of 1984 (Act) for service arrangements made by non-vessel-operating common carriers (NVOCCs), subject to the conditional filing requirements set forth in proposed new 46 CFR Part 531.
The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) has issued a proposed rule that would provide an exemption from the tariff publication requirements of the Shipping Act of 1984 (Act) for service arrangements made by non-vessel-operating common carriers (NVOCCs), subject to the conditional filing requirements set forth in proposed new 46 CFR Part 531.