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Enforcement

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CBP Just Rewrote the Forced Labor Rulebook: What the New Operational Guidance Means for Importers

Short summary: On June 9, 2026, CBP issued new guidance supplementing its 2022 UFLPA guidance and other resources with a single document covering every forced-labor authority it enforces. The new guidance outlines CBP’s detention and exclusion processes and gives practical guidance on how to respond.

On June 9, 2026, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) published its new Forced Labor Enforcement Operational Guidance for Importers (Publication No. 5560-0526). It is not a refresh. It updates the June 13, 2022, UFLPA Operational Guidance for Importers and, for the first time, consolidates all forced-labor enforcement authorities CBP wields into a single 89-page reference. 

That consolidation is the story. Until now, importers had to stitch together separate sources to understand how the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA), Withhold Release Orders and Findings under 19 U.S.C. § 1307, and the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) actually differ in practice. CBP has now mapped all of them — including the exact timelines, the review paths, and the documentation bar — in one place. The practical effect: ignorance of the process is no longer a defensible position. 

The one-line summary every importer needs 

CBP detains or excludes goods it suspects were made, wholly or in part, with forced labor — and the burden is on you to prove they weren’t, on a clock that can […]

By |2026-06-17T10:00:59-04:00June 17, 2026|CTPAT, Enforcement, Forced Labor, Import, International Trade, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)|0 Comments
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USTR Launches New Section 301 Actions: Key Developments for Importers 

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) has recently announced a series of significant Section 301 actions targeting a range of trade-related concerns, including intellectual property protection, forced labor, and alleged unfair trade practices. Collectively, these developments demonstrate the Administration’s continued willingness to utilize Section 301 as a tool to address perceived barriers to U.S. commerce and advance broader trade policy objectives. 

Vietnam

On May 29, 2026, USTR published a Federal Register Notice announcing an investigation of Vietnam under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. The investigation follows identifying Vietnam as a Priority Foreign Country in the 2026 Special 301 Report, which was published on April 30, 2026. The investigation will seek to determine whether Vietnam’s persistent failure to resolve long-standing concerns about intellectual property (IP) protection and enforcement is unreasonable or discriminatory and burdens or restricts U.S. commerce

Once the investigation is complete, Ambassador Greer will determine what, if any, responsive action should be taken to address them. Comments in this proceeding are due July 2, 2026. 

Brazil

On June 2, 2026, USTR published a Federal Register Notice announcing a determination under Section 301 that certain of Brazil’s acts, policies, and practices are unreasonable and burden or restrict U.S. commerce, and are thus actionable under Section 301(b) of the Trade Act. These acts, policies, and practices include: 

    […]
By |2026-06-05T11:10:41-04:00June 5, 2026|Enforcement, Enforcement, Forced Labor, International Trade, Special 301, tariffs, Trade Policy, U.S. Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR)|0 Comments
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FDA Announces One-Day Inspection Pilot

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that it is piloting one-day inspectional assessments. These assessments will be shorter, more focused, and will complement existing standard FDA inspections.  

Shorter Inspections, More Coverage 

Launched in April 2026, the pilot is part of a broader initiative to make the agency’s inspectional resources more targeted and efficient. The new assessments will allow for broader coverage, enabling the agency to assess more facilities without compromising regulatory rigor. 

The pilot is being conducted across multiple FDA inspectorates, including human and animal foods, biologics, medical products, and clinical research programs. Facilities are selected using risk-based criteria such as:  

  • Product type 
  • Prior inspection outcomes 
  • Operational characteristics  

As of late April 2026, the FDA has completed approximately 46 one-day assessments.  

The agency made clear that one-day inspectional assessments are not intended to replace standard FDA inspections. Instead, they are meant to provide an additional tool to the agency’s enforcement approach. The ‘one-day’ framework is also flexible – investigators retain authority to expand the scope or duration of an assessment if warranted.  

The pilot will continue through fiscal year 2026. The FDA is currently developing evaluation metrics to assess effectiveness, including inspection duration, escalation rates, and the utility of findings in informing risk-based decision-making. 

What Facility Owners and Operators Should Do 

Facility owners and operators should remain ready […]

By |2026-05-26T12:37:26-04:00May 26, 2026|Best Practices, Cosmetics, Enforcement, Food, Import, Medical Devices, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)|0 Comments
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The Largest Customs Fraud Settlement from the DOJ Trade Fraud Task Force: $549.5 Million and What This Means for Importers 

On May 12, 2026, the Department of Justice announced one of the largest customs fraud settlements in U.S. history. Perfectus Aluminum Inc., Perfectus Aluminum Acquisitions LLC, and four affiliated warehousing companies (“the Defendants”) agreed to pay $549.5 million to resolve False Claims Act (“FCA”) allegations that they knowingly evaded antidumping and countervailing duties on aluminum extrusions imported from China. 

The Scheme: Pallets That Weren’t Pallets 

The underlying conduct was relatively simple. According to the Settlement Agreement, between July 2011 and June 2014, the Defendants knowingly made false statements on CBP Form 7501 Entry Summaries, misrepresenting more than 2.2 million aluminum extrusions as finished merchandise not subject to antidumping and countervailing duties. The mechanism? The extrusions were spot-welded together to make them appear to be functional pallets — and there were no actual customers for these “pallets.” So, no merchandise was ever actually sold. 

Criminal Conviction Came First 

This civil settlement did not arise in a vacuum. In August 2021, a jury in the Central District of California convicted the Defendants of conspiracy to defraud the United States, wire fraud, and passing false or fraudulent documents through a customs house. Following sentencing, the defendants were ordered to pay restitution of approximately $1.83 billion to CBP. The May 2026 FCA settlement resolves the parallel civil litigation arising from the same conduct. Importantly, this civil resolution does not absolve the defendants from any criminal liability outlined in […]

By |2026-05-22T15:16:34-04:00May 22, 2026|AD/CVD, Enforcement, Import, International Trade, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Uncategorized|0 Comments
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FDA Update: Increased Cosmetics Oversight Under MoCRA 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently published a Voices blog, highlighting the progress the agency has made in implementing the Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act of 2022 (MoCRA).

MoCRA Background

MoCRA instituted a sweeping overhaul of federal cosmetics regulation that significantly expanded the FDA’s authority over the cosmetics and personal care industry. The FDA views MoCRA as the most substantial expansion of FDA cosmetics oversight since the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act was enacted in 1938.

MoCRA was signed into law in December 2022 and introduced a broad range of new regulatory requirements aimed at improving consumer safety, increasing transparency, and strengthening FDA enforcement capabilities. The law applies to a wide array of cosmetic products, including makeup, skincare, fragrances, shampoos, and other personal care items used daily by consumers.

Implementation Update

In its recent update, the FDA highlighted several ways the legislation is already reshaping the cosmetics industry. One of the most significant developments is the agency’s increased visibility into cosmetic manufacturing and ingredient use through mandatory facility registration and product listing requirements. The FDA reported:

  • 15,000 unique, active cosmetic product facility registrations
  • Over 1 million unique, active cosmetic product listings.
  • adverse events reported by industry increased by more than threefold

Before MoCRA, the FDA received just 5,176 cosmetic establishment registrations and 35,102 cosmetic product listings through the Voluntary Cosmetic Registration Program. This […]

By |2026-05-08T14:51:49-04:00May 8, 2026|Cosmetics, Enforcement, International Trade, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)|0 Comments
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