The USTR announced that it is extending the only exclusions from the Section 301 tariffs on Chinese-origin goods that currently exist. The exclusions will now run through December 31, 2023. The draft notice can be found here. The exclusions, which fall within two groups, were previously set to expire on September 30, 2023.
352 Previously Reinstated Exclusions Extended
Previously, the USTR had reinstated a group of 352 exclusions which had earlier been allowed to expire. The USTR has now extended these reinstated exclusions through September 30. The 352 exclusions cover a wide variety of products across Lists 1-4 including, but not limited to, seafood (such as certain Alaskan sole, crab meat, frozen fillets of haddock, sole, and flounder), chemicals, pumps, electric motors, filtering equipment, animal feeding machinery, and consumer goods. A complete list of the 352 exclusions can be found in the Annex here. Importers may take advantage of the exclusions for any product that satisfies the scope of the exclusion, regardless of whether the importer requested the exclusion.
Significantly, these 352 exclusions apply retroactively to October 21, 2021. Thus, if an importer has products covered by any of the 352 exclusions and has been paying Section 301 tariffs on imports of the products, there is still time to request refunds of the Section 301 tariffs by filing a protest with CBP, as long as the entries made within the above time frame are unliquidated or are within 180 days of liquidation.
77 COVID-related exclusions
The USTR also extended 77 COVID-related exclusions. The COVID-related exclusions cover 77 medical-care and COVID-response products such as examination gloves, hand sanitizing wipes, and blood pressure monitors. The entire list can be found in the Annex here.
Section 301 Four Year Review
The USTR is currently conducting a four year review of the Section 301 tariffs, and its notice states that its extensions of the exclusions for these two groups is based in part on the need to “allow for further consideration” under this review. The four year review covers the overall structure of the tariffs, including which products (if any) should be subject to the Section 301 duties. While the USTR has stated that it continues to consider additional exclusion processes, as warranted, it has provided no clear indication as to whether it would restart the process of applying for exclusions. Results of the review are expected by the end of this year.
