Monday Morning eBriefing

The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) issued a final rule amending the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). This rule adopts the interim final rule that DDTC previously published on Jan. 17, 2025, with some changes.

The U.S. Census Bureau on Aug. 14 published a final rule making clarifications to the Foreign Trade Regulations (FTR). However, the agency on Aug. 27 followed up with a Federal Register notice including corrections to this final rule in § 30.1, 30.3, and Appendix B to Part 30.

NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) completed its comparability findings for all worldwide fisheries under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The Federal Register notice will be published Sept 2.

Through a Federal Register Notice released for public inspection on Aug. 28, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) announced a major policy shift, easing certain export control requirements under the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) for shipments to Syria. This change, which will take effect Sept. 2, follows the Treasury Department’s sanctions relief issued previously this year and creates new opportunities for authorized exports, but it also carries important compliance considerations for freight forwarders.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) today announced the extension of exclusions in the Section 301 Investigation of China’s Acts, Policies, and Practices Related to Technology Transfer, Intellectual Property, and Innovation. The exclusions were previously scheduled to expire on Aug. 31. The exclusions have now been extended through Nov. 29, 2025.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) continues to update to its list of qualified parties to pay duties on international mail shipments. As outlined in an Executive Order, duty on international mail shipments must be paid by the international mail carrier or a qualified party acting in lieu of the carrier.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said the Fiscal Year 2026 Customs User Fees deployed to the Certification and Production environments on Aug. 28. The adjusted fee amounts and limitations will be applied to imports, effective Oct. 1.

A summary of the latest legislative and regulatory transport, logistics and trade sector updates brought to you by our NCBFAA Transportation Counsel firm Venable.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has made available for testing in the ACE Certification Environment (CERT) the enhancement for Automated Rejection of Insufficient Cargo Description, Shipper Name, and Consignee Name, effective Aug. 25. CBP noted that the release to the ACE Production Environment (PROD) is set to be deployed on Sept. 27.

To help ACE users take full advantage of ACE Reports functionality, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently began a series of monthly ACE Reports informational webinars, with the next one, ACE Reports Webinar #4: Additional ACE Reports Functionalities, on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 1-2:30 p.m. ET.

The Port of Houston Seaport announced a change in the Permit to Transfer process for agricultural products. Except for perishable goods (produce), the importer or customs broker who is responsible for each shipment must notify Customs and Border Protection (CBP), via email or phone, of their preferred Centralized Examination Station (CES) location.

A summary of the latest customs and cross-border trade regulatory updates brought to you by our NCBFAA Customs Counsel firm Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg.

President Trump announced on Friday, Aug. 22, that his administration has initiated an investigation into furniture imports, with the possibility of imposing tariffs on these products later this year.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will hold its next Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) quarterly meeting in Washington, D.C., from 1-5 p.m. ET on Sept. 17. The meeting will be open to the public via webinar only, the agency said.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Aug. 21 updated its IEEPA Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) to clarify the unstacking provisions. Specifically, under “IEEPA Overarching,” see the question, “What are the current unstacking provisions?”

The NCBFAA Customs Committee and Counsel of Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A., will continue to track the imposition of additional Section 232 tariffs on U.S. imports aluminum and steel derivatives, watch progress of the U.S. and European Union trade framework agreement announced on Aug. 21, and monitor the Canadian government’s commitment to end certain retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods by Sept. 1.

Customs and Border Protection said recent unannounced visits at Customs Bonded Facilities (CBF) have yielded numerous cases of violations. The agency reminds CBF operators of authorities that CBP Port Directors may exercise in cases of violations.

What are you experiencing with your Food and Drug Administration (FDA) shipments right now? The FDA launched the National Entry Review (NER) program on Aug. 4 to streamline and standardize import operations. The program transitions from port-by-port reviews to a nationwide system by utilizing technology and staff across multiple time zones.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) sent a reminder to customs brokers operating in the vicinity of JFK International Airport in New York with contact information for its personnel in the port who can address CPSC-related inquiries.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has provided guidance to the trade on becoming qualified for the payment of duty on international mail shipments. Effective Aug. 29, 2025, de minimis duty-free treatment under 19 U.S.C. § 1321(a)(2)(C) will no longer be available for shipments entering into the U.S. not covered by 50 U.S.C. § 1702(b), including those entering through international mail.