Yesterday was the first deadline to submit requests to modify the list of products eligible for duty-free treatment under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP). The next deadline will be November 16th, when comments requesting waivers of the competitive need limitations (CNLs) will be due. Now is the time to revise import value levels and market shares for products that could breach the CNLs and, if necessary, begin work on petitioning the U.S. government for a waiver. For 2010, the total market share limit remains at 50% and the maximum value of imports allowed under GSP will go up to $145 million. Products with waivers in place for more than five years will be limited to $217.5 million in imports and 75% of total market share.
As a reminder, the GSP program was initiated in 1976 and offers duty-free treatment for 4800 products from 131 designated countries and territories throughout the world. Products and countries participating in the program are reviewed on a yearly basis. Companies and countries have millions of dollars at stake during each GSP review. The most recent GSP review, published on July 1, 2010 resulted in:
· withdrawal of duty-free treatment for imports of certain passenger tires and shrimp products from Thailand, wood flooring from Brazil and gold necklaces from India;
· continuation of duty-free treatment for fresh-cut miniature carnations from Colombia and silver jewelry from Thailand;
· addition of frozen beans and frozen mixed vegetables to the list of GSP-eligible products as of July 1;
· continuation of duty-free treatment for 110 products from 19 beneficiary countries because of De Minimis waivers;
· acceptance of petitions to review whether Sri Lanka has met GSP eligibility criteria related to worker rights and whether Argentina has met the criteria related to the enforcement of arbitral awards; and
· continuation of eligibility reviews of Lebanon, Russia and Uzbekistan regarding intellectual property rights protection and Bangladesh, Niger, the Philippines and Uzbekistan regarding worker rights.
Navigating the GSP procedures for submissions and understanding what are the most important elements taken into account by the U.S. government during the review can be a difficult task. The Office of the United States Representatives itself has noted that “any person or party making a submission is strongly advised to review the GSP regulations”. If you would like assistance during this process, please contact our ST&R professionals in Washington, D.C., Jennifer Mulveny, jmulveny@strtrade.com, or David Olave, dolave@strtrade.com.
