Interim implementation instructions for the US-Mexico-Canada agreement were posted April 20th by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) which provides the technical language needed for companies to develop internal processes as they prepare for the revised NAFTA to take effect.
The interim implementation instructions provide “guidance with respect to the preferential tariff claims under the USMCA”.
The document covers many of the USMCA provisions, including making preference claims, rules of origin for automotive goods, and country of origin marking rules. Lengthy appendices cover automotive rules of origin, including labour value content requirements, as well as textile and apparel rules of origin procedures.
The provisions need to be formally aligned with Canada and Mexico as part of the Uniform Regulations process. The document is not final and subject to further revision.
The paragraph below, is the background provided in the document.
On January 29, 2020, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act, H.R. 5430; Public Law 116-113; XXX Stat. XXX; 19 U.S.C. XXXX note (“Act”) was signed into law. The Act provides for the Agreement between the United States of America, the United Mexican States, and Canada, signed on December 10, 2019 and ratified by all three countries, with final ratification on March 13, 2020 (“USMCA” or “Agreement”), to enter into force on Month, XX, 2020. Section 103 of the Act authorizes the President to proclaim the tariff modifications and provide the rules of origin for preferential tariff treatment with respect to goods provided for in the Agreement. The text of the Agreement is posted on the U.S. Trade Representative’s website.
The Agreement provides for the immediate or staged elimination of duties and barriers to trilateral trade in goods originating in the United States, Mexico and/or Canada.
This memorandum provides guidance with respect to preferential tariff claims under the USMCA. Title 19, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is being amended to implement the Agreement and the Act. The procedures outlined in this memorandum are in place pending the issuance of the applicable regulations.
To read full memorandum, click here.
Source: U.S. Customs and Border Protection
