Monday Morning eBriefing

NCBFAA encourages Members to routinely check our special Government Shutdown Resources webpage for updates and announcements which are added as soon as they are received from Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Partner Government Agencies (PGAs). The shutdown has now entered its third week.

The NCBFAA Customs Committee and Counsel of Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A., are tracking the possible imposition of increased tariffs for China products, effective Nov. 1, and have provided our customs broker members with guidance for filing USMCA 1520(d) claims to refund IEEPA duties and HTSUS modifications related to the U.S.-EU Framework. The Committee will also relay related Customs and Border Protection (CBP) guidance to our customs broker members as soon as it’s received.

The Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Machinery Center in Laredo, Texas, reminded the trade in an Oct. 17 notice to “ensure strict compliance with the reporting guidance” regarding Section 232 duties on steel and aluminum articles and their derivatives. “Accurate reporting of steel and aluminum content and quantities is essential to avoid potential errors, under-collection of duties, and enforcement actions,” the agency said.

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

The Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Agencia Nacional de Aduanas de Mexico (ANAM) binational meeting, originally scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 22, has been postponed due to the government shutdown.

The Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) has now completed updating the agency's Listserv subscription request link on their FWS.gov website. This Listserv serves as FWS' primary channel for communicating with the trade community.

E-filing of Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) certificates will become mandatory on July 8, 2026. This is not a simple PGA e-filing that can be mastered in a month or two. Some importers and customs brokers report it took them nearly a year to get ready.

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

NCBFAA Customs Counsel of Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A., (ST&R) has provided a summary of the Section 232 steel and aluminum inclusion requests filed in the September 2025 open period.

On behalf of NCBFAA's Board of Directors, Leadership and Staff, we want to take a moment to acknowledge and welcome Caribconex, Cervo AI, and SW Logistics, which have recently joined our association. We're so excited to have these firms join our organization and we are happy to assist in any way we can!

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on Friday, Oct. 10, announced modifications to its Section 301 tariffs on foreign ships calling U.S. ports, effective Oct. 14, as well as the addition of tariffs for container-handling equipment imports.

President Trump in a Truth Social post on Friday, Oct. 10, said that his administration will impose 100% tariffs on China products, “over and above any Tariff that they are currently paying,” by Nov. 1 or sooner, citing an “extraordinary aggressive position” taken by China against the U.S. with new tariffs and increased export controls on rare earth metals.

The NCBFAA Customs Committee and Counsel of Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A., are closing monitoring the imposition of Section 232 tariffs on timber, lumber, and derivative products imported into the U.S., starting for entries made on or after Oct. 14, and proposed Section 232 tariffs for heavy-duty truck imports by Nov. 1. The Committee will provide related Customs and Border Protection (CBP) guidance to our customs broker members as soon as it’s received.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has stepped up outreach to the trade to increase awareness of DEA import and export requirements. DEA officials recently visited several local customs broker associations to spread the word about importer and exporter requirements under the Controlled Substances Act with particular emphasis on chemicals that can be used to manufacture fentanyl.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) during an Oct. 1 call with the trade that no refunds of any type, including drawback, ACH, etc., are part of the excepted functions currently allowed by the agency during the government shutdown since they’re tied to appropriations.

Employers who participate in E‑Verify must create an E‑Verify case by Tuesday, Oct. 14, for each employee hired while E‑Verify was not available. You must use the hire date from the employee’s Form I‑9 when creating the E‑Verify case, according to a message to businesses from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

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) Area Port of Houston/Galveston has selected East Coast CES as operator of a Centralized Exanimation Station (CES) for the Port of Houston.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on a call with the trade Oct. 6 provided an update to the ACE Secure Data Portal to support electronic refund transactions in accordance with Executive Order 14247. The enhancements enable authorized trade users to provide U.S. bank information in the ACE Portal, facilitating electronic refunds from CBP via Automated Clearing House (ACH).

On behalf of NCBFAA's Board of Directors, Leadership and Staff, we want to take a moment to acknowledge and welcome ConnectPoint Brokerage, General Noli USA, Jesus M. Munoz dba United Brokers, Splendid Packaging, and Vasquez Customs Brokers, which have recently joined our association. We're so excited to have these firms join our organization and we are happy to assist in any way we can!