Much of the talk in the United States is about tariffs that are being imposed on Chinese imports by the U.S. government. However, the Chinese government has been busy with its own set of tariffs on U.S.-origin products.
Over the past year, China has imposed tariffs on over $100 billion of U.S.-origin goods. The primary targets have been agricultural products such as meat, dairy, vegetables, and fruit. Other products include coal, metals, chemicals, and medical imports such as devices and pharmaceutical ingredients.
Exclusion Process Now Available
In May 2019, China announced an increase in tariffs on some $60 billion worth of products, raising rates up to 25% on certain products, effective on June 1, 2019. Coupled with this announcement, China has created an exclusion process for Chinese importers and stakeholders to request that their products not be subject to the tariff, which would be effective for one year.
Interested parties must apply through China’s Ministry of Finance, and the requests will be reviewed by the State Council’s Customs Tariff Commission. Requests are to include facts and data that describe difficulties in finding substitutes, economic hardship for the applicant, or negative impacts on industry or society.
The option to file an exclusion request is only available for a limited time. Applications for products listed in China’s original tariff notification in June 2018 (including poultry, seafood, dairy, vegetables, coal, fuel, and medical devices) can be submitted between June 3 and July 5, 2019. For products identified by the Chinese government in July 2018 (including
liquor, fabric, tools, chemicals, antibiotics, more food, and more medical products), the window to submit requests will be from September 2 to October 18, 2019.
What if You Export to China?
Similar to the process in the U.S. for Chinese imports, exclusion requests should come from importers, manufacturers, and other stakeholders within the country. As Benjamin L. England & Associates’ attorney Ge Song explains, “U.S. exporters and suppliers with close relationships with their Chinese customers may work with their Chinese counterparts to prepare information to be included in exclusion requests; however, those filings must come from the China-based entity.”
Our affiliated attorneys have worked for years with trusted Chinese sources. If you are interested in obtaining further information about filing exclusion applications and other possible ways to reduce or eliminate the effect of the tariffs, please email us at contact@fdaimports.com for a referral. If your business is impacted by the Chinese-origin tariffs for imports into the U.S., contact us to discuss your options with one of our affiliated Customs attorneys.
