Cargo Systems Messaging Service
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CSMS #42219187 -GUIDANCE: Section 301 Tranche 4A – $300B Third Round of Product Exclusions from China (9903.88.44)
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Message re-issued with updated title.
BACKGROUND
On March 31, 2020, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) published Federal Register (FR) Notice 85 FR 17936 announcing the decision to grant the third round of certain exclusion requests from the Section 301 duty related to goods covered under list 1/Annex A (Tranche 4-$300B Action).
These product exclusions relate to the imposed additional duties announced in 84 FR 43304 and 84 FR 45821 on Chinese goods with an annual aggregate trade value of approximately $300 billion. The product exclusions will retroactively apply as of the September 1, 2019 effective date of the $300 billion action (Tranche 4A), and will extend through September 1, 2020.
The scope of each exclusion is governed by the scope of the HTSUS 10-digit classification and product descriptions in the Annex to 85 FR 17936, and not by the product descriptions set out in any particular request for exclusion. A link to the Federal Register Notice is embedded in this message.
The functionality for the acceptance of the third round of China products excluded from Section 301, Tranche 4A-$300B Action duties will be available in the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) by 7am, Eastern Standard Time on April 02, 2020.
GUIDANCE
Instructions for the trade on submitting entries to CBP containing the section 301 product exclusions the subject of this memo are set out below:
In addition to reporting the regular Chapters 05, 39, 63, 65 and 85 classifications of the HTSUS for the imported merchandise, importers shall report the HTSUS classification 9903.88.44 (Articles, the product of China, as provided for in U.S. note 20(ww) to this subchapter, each covered by an exclusion granted by the USTR for imported merchandise subject to the exclusion).
Importers shall not submit the corresponding Chapter 99 HTS number for the Section 301 duties when exclusion under HTS 9903.88.44 is claimed.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Imports which have been granted a product exclusion from the Section 301 measures, and which are not subject to the Section 301 duties, are not covered by the Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) provisions of the Section 301 Federal Register notices, but instead are subject to the FTZ provisions in 19 CFR part 146.
Duty exclusions granted by the USTR are retroactive for imports on or after the initial effective date of September 1, 2019. To request a refund of Section 301 duties paid on previous imports of products granted duty exclusions by the USTR, importers may file a Post Summary Correction (PSC) if within the PSC filing timeframe. If the entry is beyond the PSC filing timeframe, but within 180 days of the liquidation action, importers may protest the liquidation.
Reminder: The trade should be referred to CSMS 39587858 for instructions on the entry summary order of reporting for multiple HTSUS when HTSUS Chapter 98 or 99 are required.
For ease of reference, a summary of Section 301 duties and product exclusion notifications is provided as an attachment.
Questions from the importing community concerning ACE entry rejections involving product exclusions should be referred to their CBP Client Representative. Questions related to Section 301 entry-filing requirements, please refer to CSMS message #40969690 (Information on Trade Remedy Questions and Resources).

The following is the update on tariffs.

Yesterday, President Trump signed the Phase One China Trade Deal.  The full text of the agreement can be viewed here and the Chapter Fact Sheets can be viewed here.  A copy of the White House statement with agreement highlights can be viewed below.

The American for Free Trade Coalition press release, of which Gemini Shippers Group is a member, can be viewed here.

The List 4A tariff reduction was not included in the text of the deal or in the fact sheets.  USTR has published a Federal Register notice on its website that states the tariff reductions from 15% to 7.5% will happen at 12:01 AM on February 14.  The notice will be published in the Federal Register later this week.

President Trump also indicated today that there won’t be any further tariff reductions until a Phase 2 agreement is signed.  Some press reports indicate a Phase 2 deal won’t be completed until after the election.

President Trump recently announced that he is considering imposing punitive tariffs on a wide range of products from the European Union.  Recently, the World Trade Organization found that  the E.U. subsidized aircraft companies (specifically, Airbus), which harmed the U.S.  to the tune of $11 billion in trade per year.  The U.S. Trade Representative is planning, under Section 310 of the 1974 Trade Act, to impose additional duties to offset the damage to the United States caused by those subsidies.   The U.S.T.R. says that additional duties might be as high as 100%, effective as early as June 1, 2019, on certain products from the E.U. member countries.

There are 2 sections of products that are listed.   The first section is primarily aircraft related products from the U.K., France, Germany and Spain.   The second section applies to all the E.U. countries and lists 318 different tariff numbers, including many food products, some windes, as well as some leather handbags, some papers and paper products, some rugs and carpets, sweaters, ski-suits, some outerwear, men’s or boys’ suits, women’s or girls’ swimwear, blankets, bed linens, building products, some tools, and several other products.  If your company is importing from the E.U., please check with your Customs broker or look for the H.T.S. number on the following website:  https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files/enforcement/301Investigations/Preliminary_Product_List.pdf