This week, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) posted another round of List 1 exclusion extensions as well as a new round of List 4 exclusions.
Level 1 extensions are for products and harmonized tariff schedule (HTS) subheadings whose exclusions expire on May 14, 2020. The extended exclusions cover two entire 10-digit HTS subheadings and eleven specially-prepared product descriptions with a new expiration date of December 31, 2020. All other HTS subheadings and products with exclusions granted in May 2019 will lose their exclusions on May 14, making them subject to the 25 percent tariff applied to List 1 goods.
There are currently three open comment periods for exclusion extensions for other List 1, 2, and 3 goods, which can be found at USTR’s online portal. No exclusions have been extended by USTR in the absence of comments in support of the extension. The RVIA recommends companies strongly consider submitting comments in support of the extension of any product exclusions benefiting suppliers.
USTR also announced a new round of List 4 exclusions to be published this week. List 4 covers $300 billion in Chinese goods and is split into two, though only List 4a is currently subject to tariffs after List 4b was postponed following the China Phase One agreement. The exclusions consist of three 10-digit subheadings and four product-specific exclusions. This is the fourth round of List 4 exclusions after the first three were announced in March.
List 4 exclusions apply retroactively for goods entered for consumption or withdrawn from warehouse on or after September 1, 2019 and will remain in effect until September 1, 2020. Note that product exclusions are not importer-specific—they are applicable for any importer of the excluded merchandise. The scope of the exclusions is governed by the language of the product descriptions provided by USTR in its list, not by product descriptions shown in any particular exclusion request or HTS classification. As always, the RVIA encourages members to review or have their importers review the list.
Depending on the entry date, anyone who believes they are eligible will need to file a post-summary correction or protest of liquidation with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to obtain a refund for any excluded products that entered U.S. customs territory on or after September 1, 2019.
For more information, please contact Samantha Rocci at [email protected].
Click here to read the original story from the RVIA.
