The Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) posted an advance copy of a notice to be published in the Federal Register that announces the USTR’s determination to grant certain exclusion requests, as specified in the Annex to this notice, and corrects technical errors in previously announced exclusions. The product exclusions apply as of September 24, 2018, the effective date of the $200 billion action against certain Chinese actions (Tranche 3), and extend to August 7, 2020. The amendments announced in the notice are retroactive to the date that the original exclusions were published.
As set forth in the Annex, the exclusions are reflected in seventeen 10-digit HTSUS subheadings, which respond to 33 separate exclusion requests, and 61 specially prepared product descriptions, which respond to 70 separate exclusion requests. In accordance with the June 24 notice, the exclusions are available for any product that meets the description in the Annex, regardless of whether the importer benefitting from the product exclusion filed an exclusion request. Further, the scope of each exclusion is governed by the scope of the product descriptions in the Annex, and not by the product descriptions found in any particular request for exclusion.
- Paragraph A, subparagraphs (1) and (2) of the Annex create a new subheading 9903.88.48 for the exclusions and a new US note 20 (aaa) to subchapter III of chapter 99, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS).
- Paragraph A, subparagraphs (3)-(7) of the Annex contain conforming amendments to the HTSUS reflecting the modifications made by the Annex.
- Paragraph B of the Annex makes technical corrections to certain notes of the HTSUS. Specifically, Paragraph B, subparagraphs (1)-(4), make technical corrections to the specially prepared product descriptions in certain notes to the HTSUS, specifically, U.S. note (20)(qq)(57), published at 85 FR 6674 (February 5, 2020), U.S. note (20)(ss)(22), published at 85 FR 9921 (February 20, 2020), and U.S. notes (20)(vv)(58)- (59), published at 85 FR 17158 (March 26, 2020). Paragraph B, subparagraphs (5)-(6), corrects typographical errors in the product descriptions contained in U.S. note (20)(vv)(118), published at 85 FR 17158 (March 26, 2020), and U.S. note 20(xx)(11), published at 85 FR 23122 (April 24, 2020).
