If your company received a product exclusion from the Section 301 tariffs of 25%, which went into effect September 24, 2018 (List 3) or relies upon a List 3 product exclusion granted to another party, those exclusions are set to expire on August 7, 2020 unless prompt action is taken and an extension is requested by June 8, 2020.
Earlier this month, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) opened the process for parties to submit comments supporting (or opposing) extensions of product exclusions for another 12 months; the comment process is currently open only for those List 3 product exclusions that were granted on or before March 26, 2020. However, the deadline for submitting comments supporting extensions will soon expire.
Any party supporting a product exclusion can submit comments even if it is not the original requestor. Thus, if your company relies on a product exclusion granted to another party, we suggest promptly submitting comments supporting the exclusion and independently requesting an extension without reliance on the original requestor of the exclusion.
The information needed for the comments process is similar to the data required for an exclusion request. The USTR comment form requires each party to provide certain financial information and import data (both kept confidential), explanations for why the particular product is not available from U.S. or third-country sources, and a summary of the economic harm to the party submitting comments if the product exclusion is not extended.
Venable’s International Trade Group has assisted a multitude of clients in obtaining prior Section 301 product exclusions—if you would like to submit comments to extend your exclusion or support a third-party exclusion, please contact Venable's International Trade Group.