At the time of this writing, it’s not exactly another day in paradise, over 103,000 Americans are no longer with us, there are an estimated 1,500,000 confirmed U.S. cases of the coronavirus, and I am also ballparking at 40,000,000+ unemployment claims filed at the time of this writing, because just two weeks ago it was at 36,500,000.
The USMCA is about to kick into full force on July 1st. Is your chemical company ready? Overall, if you’ve been issuing NAFTA certificates in the past and are already familiar with that process, you might be surprised to find that the USMCA process might allow for more of your goods to qualify than NAFTA did
USMCA (T-MEC as it is formally called in Mexico) will enter into force on July 1, 2020. At least this is what the government of the Party members, the United States, Mexico and Canada have announced. In this case, operations occurring after this date will no longer be covered by NAFTA as this treaty will be terminated and consequently replaced by the USMCA.
One of the major changes to come out of this trade agreement is elimination of the NAFTA Certificate of Origin. Instead, the USMCA replaces the Certificate of Origin with a certification. In this regard, the USMCA will more closely resemble other free trade agreements, such as the Korean and Australian, which also utilize a certification.
Last month, we presented a webinar on University Export Controls and received an overwhelming positive response on an area of compliance that is sometimes overlooked, especially when it comes to the collaboration between a school, the private sector, and the government.
On March 24, 2020, U.S. Customs and Border Protection published Cargo Systems Messaging Service # 42133823 “Entry Summary Guidance for Pipe Spools from Multiple Countries of Origin” (the Message). The Message provided:
This article outlines the various mechanisms available to companies that encounter problems with the implementation and operation of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) that officially replaces NAFTA on July 1, 2020. While the new agreement provides many of the same mechanisms as NAFTA, there have been significant changes.
On May 4th, 2020, the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) intelligence service issued an unclassified four page report which stated in part:
[DHS Intelligence Service] assess the Chinese Government [“Peoples Republic of China” (“PRC”)] intentionally concealed the severity of COVID-19 from the International community in early January while it stockpiled medical supplies by both increasing imports and decreasing exports,” the May 1 DHS report states. (emphasis added).[1]
The ongoing COVID-19 crisis has presented unique challenges for the U.S. supply chain, and for the U.S. economy as a whole. Front and center is the shortage of critical medical equipment and personal protective equipment (“PPE”), including ventilators, respirators, masks, gloves, swabs and other related equipment.
The month of March has brought a deluge of cancellations of international conferences, travel and severely affected markets around the world, all due to the spread of “COVID-19” – the newest strain of the “Coronavirus” which was first discovered last December in Wuhan, China.
The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) has officially been ratified by all three North American parties, now what? For one thing, the United States, Canada, and Mexico must develop uniform regulations with an effective date prior to, or on June 1, 2020 which is the official implementation date of the USMCA.
I know, I know, some would say, “Are you kidding? They started this pandemic”? Yes, it did start in Wuhan, in China, but finger pointing at this time is not going to help either of us rebound from the economic impact that it has caused both countries.
Living in the current somewhat apocalyptic world, one would be justified in asking the proverbial question, “Why can’t we all just get along?”
Determining the appropriate value for merchandise that you import can be a tricky task. In general, you need to start by determining the basis of appraisement that is appropriate for your situation. I’ll list them below but note that you should try to use the first one.
The United States Trade Representative (USTR) has recently opened a comment period to address the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The USTR is inviting interested parties to submit a comment explaining whether a product currently covered by the Section 301 tariff action is needed for the medical and public health response against the virus.
Your company exports to Canada and Mexico. So:
So long as you can produce a Certificate of Origin everything is taken care of
NAFTA and USMCA are import things, so if you are an exporter you have no concerns
The importers in Canada and Mexico are the only ones who have to deal with the requirements
Flip to page 22 to view Adrienne Braumiller and Bob Brewer’s article
On December 2nd, the House of Representatives unanimously passed a bill that may ultimately cause Chinese companies to be delisted from the U.S. stock exchange. The purpose of the bill is to allow U.S. accounting regulators to audit Chinese companies that are traded on the U.S. stock exchange.
SME’s are small and medium-sized enterprises that make-up the backbone of world trade and growth.
Amazon is a good representation of what SME’s can accomplish in a well-orchestrated partnership.
Customs authorities may investigate companies´ compliance with the customs procedures and rules of origin and initiate a new origin verification proceeding against those that used a NAFTA Certificate within a 5 year retroactive period.
Many people are aware of the Section 301 investigation into the unfair trade practices of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). However, a similar investigation has recently been initiated by the United States Trade Representative (USTR) into actions by Vietnam.
Although 2020 is not over yet (unfortunately), the Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) has had a busy year by any measure.
