Background

Continuing education for customs brokers, imports made with forced labor, and electronic filing of bonds are among the U.S. Customs and Border Protection regulations listed in the semiannual regulatory agendas of the departments of Homeland Security and the Treasury, which list the following regulations affecting international trade that could be issued within the next year. The expected timeframes for issuance of these rules are indicated in parentheses.

Upcoming Regulations

- a proposed rule that would exempt portions of the CTPAT system of records from one or more provisions of the Privacy Act because of criminal, civil, and administrative enforcement requirements (June 2020; previously December 2019)

- an advance notice of proposed rulemaking to seek input on a continuing education requirement for licensed customs brokers (September 2020; previously unspecified)

- a final rule eliminating a restriction pertaining to CBP’s authority to refund excessive duties, taxes, fees, or interest imposed on distilled spirits, wine, and beer to facilitate implementation of the Craft Beverage Modernization Act (September 2020; previously December 2019; interim rule issued August 2018)

- an interim final rule implementing a TFTEA provision extending duty-free treatment to products exported and returned to the U.S. within three years after having been exported (September 2020; previously December 2019)

- a proposed rule to update, modernize, and streamline the process for enforcing the prohibition against the importation of goods mined, produced, or manufactured in any foreign country by convict or forced labor or indentured labor under penal sanctions (September 2020; previously January 2020)

- a proposed rule to eliminate the paper-based bond application and approval processes and require all bonds to be filed by sureties using an electronic data interchange or email (September 2020; previously March 2020)

- a proposed rule to debar from entering U.S. ports any vessel owned or chartered by an entity found to be in violation of certain laws and regulations relating to the performance of longshore work by non-immigrant crew members (October 2020; previously February 2020)

- a final rule that would require customs brokers to verify the identity of importers and non-resident importers and would create a process for doing so that is contemporaneous with obtaining power of attorney (December 2020; previously August 2020; proposed rule issued in August 2019)

- a proposed rule amending the regulations pertaining to the importation of goods that violate or are suspected of violating the copyright laws in accordance with the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act and certain provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (January 2021; previously December 2019)

- a final rule shifting authority to make certain decisions regarding customs transactions from port directors to directors of the Centers of Excellence and Expertise (January 2021; previously June 2020)

- a final rule creating a procedure for the disclosure of information otherwise protected by the Trade Secrets Act to a trademark owner when goods bearing suspected counterfeit trademarks have been abandoned (January 2021; proposed rule published in August 2019)

- a final rule to implement a mandatory Air Cargo Advance Screening program for inbound aircraft with commercial cargo (February 2021; interim final rule published November 2018)

Long-Term Actions

- a final rule raising from $200 to $800 the de minimis value of articles that may be imported by one person on one day free of duty and tax (interim final rule published in August 2016)

- a final rule reflecting that the Automated Commercial System is being phased out as a CBP-authorized electronic data interchange system for the processing of electronic entry and entry summary filings (interim final rule issued October 2015)

- a final rule on procedures for investigating the evasion of antidumping and countervailing duty orders (interim final rule published in August 2016)

- a final rule clarifying the circumstances under which a notice of arrival must be filed for imported pesticides and pesticidal devices, codifying existing required NOA data elements, requiring the submission of additional NOA data elements for unregistered pesticides that are currently optional, and permitting the NOA to be filed electronically in the Automated Commercial Environment (interim final rule published in September 2016)

Regulations Completed

- a proposed rule to modernize the customs broker regulations, including by allowing national permit holders to conduct customs business in all districts within the U.S. customs territory, removing the requirement to have a district permit in each district where the broker conducts customs business, removing the requirement that brokers maintain physical offices in the districts in which they conduct customs business, and updating the requirements on responsible supervision and control

Regulations Removed

- a proposed rule to update and modify the (a)(1)(A) list in the appendix to 19 CFR Part 163

- a proposed rule seeking to promote the speed, accuracy, and transparency of administrative rulings concerning the importation of articles that may be subject to exclusion orders issued by the International Trade Commission under section 337 of the 1930 Tariff Act

- a proposed rule pertaining to prior disclosure and the procedure for demanding payment of duties, taxes, fees, or revenue for violations of 19 USC sections 1592 or 1593(a) when a penalty claim is not issued

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