Background on CBP Country of Origin Determination and USMCA
All merchandise of foreign origin imported into the United States (U.S.) must generally be marked with its country of origin, and it is subject to a country of origin (COO) determination by CBP. The country of origin of imported goods may be used as a factor to determine eligibility for preferential trade treatment under a free trade agreement.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is now auditing Foreign Supplier Verification Program (FSVP) Importers to ensure they comply with the FSVP program. To date, over 92 warning letters have been issued against companies for FSVP violations. If your business is importing food into the U.S., or wants to start, our one-hour, NEI accredited, webinar on “Importing Food in Compliance with U.S. FDA & Surviving A FSVP Audit” will provide best practices and TOP tips to comply with FDA regulations and avoid, navigate, and mitigate any potential FDA compliance action.
Register today to to hear directly from Senior Trade Advisor, Domenic Veneziano, DTL’s president, Jennifer Diaz, and Associate Attorney, Denise Calle, on the pathway to legally import food and best practices for surviving a FSVP audit.
The Florida Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association (FCBF) encourages all custom brokers, patent, trademark and all international trade professional to join its Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and UL. This one-hour webinar will give custom brokers, importers, and all other international trade professionals the ability to learn and understand CBP’s IPR customs and enforcement.
This webinar will be Friday, September 3, 2021 at 11:30 AM EST.
An Introduction to the National Organic Program Established by Congress and announced in 2000, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (“USDA”) National Organic Program (“NOP”) is a federal regulatory program which develops and enforces uniform national standards for organically-produced agricultural products sold in the United States. NOP operates as a public-private partnership which accredits third-party organizations to certify that farms and businesses meet the national organic standards. By enforcing its standards, NOP ensures a level playing field for producers while protecting consumer confidence in the integrity of the USDA organic seal.
The NOP’s Compliance & Enforcement Division (“C&E”) is involved in enforcement organic standards. C&E enforces rules by working with independent certifying agencies. Independent certifying agencies accredited by the USDA conduct periodic inspections or audits.
What is Valuation and Why Does it Matter? Customs Valuation is a procedure to determine the customs value of imported goods. The customs value is essential to calculate the total duty to be paid on an imported good. Because there was a need for the international community to have a standardized system for valuing imports, many nations became signatories to a World Trade Organization (“WTO”) agreement that established valuation norms known as the Tokyo Round Valuation Code (later amended into the WTO Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the GATT 1994).
The United States was a signatory to these treaties and currently maintains and enforces a rigorous valuation system. The U.S. Customs valuation methodology (as well as a summary of relevant Customs rulings) are described in detail in the Valuation Encyclopedia. A common customs valuation standard is important because it ensures that: