Just over two years ago, on July 6, 2018, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) levied an estimated $34 Billion in Tariffs (also known as Tranche 1 or List 1) or against imports into the U.S. from the Chinese Communist Party due to the US’ Section 301 investigation of China’s acts, policies, and practices related to technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation.
Following the publication of the tariffs, on July 11, 2018, USTR published Exclusion Process Procedures for items included on List 1. Petitioners were required to submit their requests by October 9, 2018, and USTR began granting exclusions in December 2018. Since the initial imposition of the Section 301 duties, USTR has granted 10 rounds of exclusions totaling more than 6,200 requests for List 1. Additionally, there are still more than 6,500 exclusion requests still pending approval for the Action taken on August 20, 2019.
Exclusions
As customary, if an exclusion request is granted to a specific product, all products classified by that same ten (10) digit HTSUS heading (if they also fall under the exclusion description) become excluded. Essentially, one granted exclusion can be used by any other party if their merchandise falls under the same HTS and description excluded. Many companies may be unaware that thousands of products have been granted exclusion that they may also qualify to use.
Time Period
The initial exclusions were granted for a finite period of time, which typically lasts a few months. In order for these products to remain excluded, USTR must grant an exclusion extension. As per the July 9, 2020, Federal Register Notice, Section B, the USTR has decided to extend certain product exclusions. According to the notice, USTR evaluated this decision based of off factors set out in Federal Register Notices published on July 11th (2018) and April 30th (2020), respectively.
In short, the July 9 Federal Register Notice extends the previously granted exclusions “under heading 9903.88.11 and under U.S. note 20(n) to subchapter III of chapter 99 of the HTSUS: (8), (17), (18), (23), (28), (77), (85), (87), (88), (97), (98), and (106). The Notice extends the exclusions from July 2019 (as it originally articulated) to December 31, 2020.
List 1 Exclusion Rounds
The chart below details the various rounds of exclusions granted for HTS’s included in List or Tranche 1:
The Federal Register Notice published on July 9, 2020, specifically applies to the 6th round:
Exclusion Extension
Effective July 9, 2020, until December 31, 2020, subchapter III of chapter 99 of the HTSUS is modified…by inserting the following new heading 9903.88.52 in the “Heading/Subheading” section.
The following particular products (under the below HTS’s and descriptions) get to take advantage of this extension of time:
Did you miss the deadline to file your exclusion or comments? Was your exclusion denied? Now is the time to review all exclusions granted for your HTS’s to determine whether they are applicable to your product. All granted exclusions may apply to any product that meets the USTR’s product description. If you are not tracking We can assist you to review the granted exclusions and strategize on how to timely file protests and post summary corrections to get refunds from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) of paid Section 301 duties.
For background information on China Tariffs and numerous ways to mitigate the effect of the China tariffs, check out our previous blogs. Diaz Trade Law has assisted clients in assessing their best options to prepare or mitigate the China tariffs and submitted comments and exclusion requests. Our Customs and International Law attorneys are available at 305-456-3830 or info@diaztradelaw.com.
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