Here is a recap of the latest customs and international trade news:     

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) 

  • CBP authorized the release of most types of merchandise on or after Dec. 17 through Dec. 31 under Immediate Delivery procedures. 
  • Reminder: On January 11, 2025, CBP will deploy the second release of the Section 321 – Does Not Exceed $800 in Aggregated Shipments enhancement to the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE). This enhancement will provide a warning in ACE when a de minimis shipment may exceed the $800 per person/per day threshold. 
  • CBP seized $81.5 million in unapproved electronic nicotine delivery systems. 

Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) 

  • CPSC approved a Final Rule to implement electronic filing (eFiling) of Certificate information for regulated, imported consumer products and to revise requirements for Certificates of Compliance. 

U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 

  • The FDA announced new EU requirements for importing honey and other apiculture products, effective November 29, 2024. The EU regulation requires that all establishments importing apiculture products into the EU (including honey, beeswax, royal jelly, propolis, and pollen) must register in the EU’s Trade Control and Expert System (TRACES). 

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) 

  • The USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is restricting imports of animal commodities originating from or transiting through El Salvador, after detecting New World screwworm in cattle in the country.  

Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) 

  • BIS imposes penalty against Integra Technologies, Inc. for unlicensed shipments of common high priority list items to Russia. 
  • BIS completed a round of interagency review for an upcoming rule that would impose import restrictions on certain drones and drone parts from China.  

United States Trade Representative (USTR) 

  • USTR issued a press release detailing several efforts to hold corporations accountable through trade, specifically through the USMCA and forced labor enforcement. 

Department of Justice (DOJ) 

  • Founder of Iranian company arrested for conspiring to export sophisticated electronic components from the United States to Iran in violation of U.S. export control and sanctions laws. 
  • An Ontario man was convicted of trafficking counterfeit goods and was sentenced to serve 24 months in prison and ordered to pay $4,800,870 in restitution. 

U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) 

  • USITC voted to institute a 337 investigation of certain women’s flats with colored outsoles thereof.  
  • USITC voted to institute a 337 investigation of certain injection molding machines. 
  • USITC made a determination in its review concerning raw flexible magnets from China and Taiwan that revoking the existing antidumping and countervailing duty orders would be likely to lead to continuation or recurrence of material injury. As a result, the existing orders will remain in place. 

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 

  • An EPA final rule that becomes effective Jan. 17 will restrict and eventually ban the use of perchloroethylene (PCE), a chemical solvent often used in dry cleaning. Entities that import or export the substance in bulk form or as part of a mixture or article will be subject to certification requirements under the Toxic Substances Control Act. 

National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)  

  • The NMFS issued a notice of proposed rulemaking seeking to revise regulations to allow for the streamlining of electronic filing requirements pertaining to the import of fish or fish products. The proposed rule would enable the electronic entry filing of data from the Certification of Admissibility (COA) form into the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE).  

Congress 

  • The Senate Finance Committee held a hearing to consider the nominations of James Coughlan and Rhonda Schmidtlein to be members of the USITC. 

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