[Federal Register: February 26, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 38)]
[Notices]
[Page 8937-8939]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr26fe04-45]
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COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS
Amendment of Export Visa Requirements to Include the Electronic
Visa Information System for Certain Cotton, Wool, and Man-Made Fiber
Textiles and Textile Products Produced or Manufactured in The Socialist
Republic of Vietnam
February 20, 2004.
AGENCY: Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA)
ACTION: Issuing a directive to the Commissioner, Bureau of Customs and
Border Protection amending visa requirements.
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EFFECTIVE DATE: March 22, 2004.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Naomi Freeman, International Trade
Specialist, Office of Textiles and Apparel, U.S. Department of
Commerce, (202) 482-4212.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Authority: Section 204 of the Agricultural Act of 1956, as
amended (7 U.S.C. 1854); Executive Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, as
amended.
[[Page 8938]]
On February 19, 2004, the Governments of the United States and
Vietnam signed an agreement amending the existing Visa Arrangement for
cotton, wool, and man-made fiber textiles and textile products subject
to specific quota limits, as detailed in the notice and letter to the
Commissioner, Bureau of Customs and Border Protection, published in the
Federal Register on May 16, 2003 (see 68 FR 26575). The amended visa
Arrangement establishes new provisions for the Electronic Visa
Information System (ELVIS). This notice amends, but does not cancel,
the notice and letter to the Commissioner of Customs, as amended,
published in the Federal Register on July 30, 2003 (see 68 FR 44748).
A description of the textile and apparel categories in terms of
categories within the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States
is available in the CORRELATION: Textile and Apparel Categories with
the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (see Federal
Register notice 69 FR 4926, published on February 2, 2004).
Interested persons are advised to take all necessary steps to
ensure that textile products entered into the United States for
consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, will meet the
visa requirements set forth in the letter published below to the
Commissioner, Bureau of Customs and Border Protection.
James C. Leonard III,
Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.
Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements
February 20, 2004.
Commissioner,
Bureau of Customs and Border Protection, Washington, DC 20229.
Dear Commissioner: This directive amends, but does not cancel,
the directive issued to you on July 24, 2003, as amended, by the
Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.
Under the terms of Section 204 of the Agricultural Act of 1956, as
amended (7 U.S.C. 1854); and pursuant to the Visa and ELVIS
Arrangement, signed on February 19, 2004, between the Governments of
the United States and Vietnam; and in accordance with the provisions
of Executive Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, as amended, you are
directed to prohibit entry into the customs territory of the United
States (i.e. the 50 states, the District of Columbia and the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico) for consumption and withdrawal from
warehouse for consumption of cotton, wool, and man-made fiber
textiles and textile products subject to specific quota limits, as
detailed in the directive dated May 12, 2003, and exported on or
after March 22, 2004, for which the Government of Vietnam has not
issued an appropriate export visa and Electronic Visa Information
System (ELVIS) transmission fully described below. Should additional
categories, part-categories or merged categories become subject to
import quotas, the entire category(s), part-category(s) or merged
category(s) shall be included in the coverage of this Arrangement.
A visa must accompany each shipment of the aforementioned
textile products. The original visa in blue ink shall be stamped on
the front of the original commercial invoice.
Visa Requirements
Each visa stamp will include the following information:
1. The visa number. The visa number shall be in the standard
nine digit letter format beginning with one numeric digit for the
last digit of the year of export, followed by the two character
alpha code specified by the International Organization for
Standardization (ISO) (The code for Vietnam is VN), and a six digit
numerical serial number identifying the shipment; e.g., 4VN123456.
2. The date of issuance. The date of issuance shall be the day,
month, and year on which the visa was issued.
3. The original signature of the issuing official authorized by
the Government of Vietnam.
4. The correct category(s), merged category(s), part
category(s), quantity(s), and units of quantity in the shipment in
the units(s) of quantity provided for in the U.S. Department of
Commerce Correlation and in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the
United States (HTSUS), e.g., ``Cat. 340-510 DZ''.
Quantities must be stated in whole numbers. Decimals or
fractions will not be accepted. Merged category quota merchandise
may be accompanied by either the appropriate merged category visa or
the correct category visa corresponding to the actual shipment. (For
example, quota Category 340/640 may be visaed as ``Cat. 340/640'' or
if the shipment consists solely of Category 340 merchandise, the
shipment may be visaed as ``Cat. 340,'' but not as ``Cat. 640'').
The Bureau of Customs and Border Protection shall not permit
entry if the shipment does not have a visa, or if the visa number,
date of issuance, signature, category, quantity are missing,
incorrect, illegible, or have been crossed out or altered in any
way. If the quantity indicated on the visa is less than that of the
shipment, entry shall not be permitted. If the quantity indicated on
the visa is more than that of the shipment, entry shall be permitted
and only the amount entered shall be charged to any applicable
quota.
Quantities shall be those determined by the Bureau of Customs
and Border Protection.
If the visa is not acceptable then a new visa must be obtained
from the Government of Vietnam or a visa waiver may be issued by the
U.S. Department of Commerce at the request of the Vietnamese Embassy
in Washington, DC and presented to the Bureau of Customs and Border
Protection before any portion of the shipment will be released. The
waiver, if used, only waives the requirement to present a visa with
the shipment. It does not waive the quota requirement. Visa waivers
will only be issued for classification purposes or for one-time
special purpose shipments that are not part of an ongoing commercial
enterprise.
If the visaed invoice is deficient, the Bureau of Customs and
Border Protection will not return the original document after entry,
but will provide a certified copy of that visaed invoice for use in
obtaining a new correct original visaed invoice, or a visa waiver.
Only the actual quantity in the shipment and the correct
category will be charged to the restraint level.
ELVIS Requirements:
A. Each ELVIS transmission shall include the following
information:
i. The visa number: The visa number shall be in the standard
nine digit letter format beginning with one numeric digit for the
last digit of the year of export, followed by the two character
alpha code specified by the International Organization for
Standardization (ISO) (The code for Vietnam is VN), and a six digit
numerical serial number identifying the shipment; e.g., 4VN123456.
ii. The date of issuance: The date of issuance shall be the day,
month and year on which the visa was issued.
iii. The correct category(s), merged category(s), part
category(s), quantity(s), and unit(s) of quantity of the shipment in
the unit(s) of quantity provided for in the U.S. Department of
Commerce Correlation and in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the
United States. Quantities must be stated in whole numbers. Decimals
or fractions will not be accepted.
iv. The quantity of the shipment in the correct units of
quantity
v. The manufacturer ID number (MID)
B. Entry of a shipment shall not be permitted:
I. if an ELVIS transmission has not been received for the
shipment from the Government of Vietnam;
II.if the ELVIS transmission for that shipment is missing any of
the following information:
i) visa number
ii) category, part category, or merged category
iii) quantity
iv) unit of measure
v) date of issuance
vi) manufacturer ID number
III. if the ELVIS transmission for the shipment does not match
the information supplied by the importer, or the Customs broker
acting as an agent on behalf of the importer, with regard to any of
the following:
i) visa number
ii) category, part category, or merged category
iii) unit of measure
IV. If the quantity being entered is greater than the quantity
transmitted.
V. If the visa number has previously been used, except in the
case of a split shipment, or cancelled, except when entry has
already been made using the visa number.
C. A new, correct ELVIS transmission from the Government of
Vietnam is required before a shipment that has been denied entry
[[Page 8939]]
for one the circumstances mentioned above will be released.
D. Visa waivers will only be accepted if the shipment qualifies
for a one-time special purpose shipment that is not part of an
ongoing commercial enterprise. A visa waiver may be issued by the
Department of Commerce at the request of the Vietnamese Embassy in
Washington, DC. A visa waiver only waives the requirements to
present an ELVIS transmission at the time of entry, and doesn't
waive any quota requirements.
E. In the event of a systems failure, shipments will not be
released for twenty-four hours or 1 calendar day. If system failure
exceeds twenty-four hours or 1 calendar day, for the remaining
period of the system failure the Bureau of Customs and Border
Protection will release shipments on the basis of the visa data
provided by the Government of Vietnam. Vietnam will retransmit all
data that was affected by the systems failure when the system is
functioning normally.
Shipments not requiring visas or ELVIS transmission:
Merchandise imported for the personal use of the importer and
not for resale, regardless of value, and properly marked commercial
sample shipments valued at U.S. $800 or less do not require a visa
or an ELVIS transmission for entry and shall not be charged to
Agreement levels.
Other Provisions:
The visa stamp remains unchanged.
The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements has
determined that this action fall with the foreign affairs exception
to the rulemaking provisions of 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1).
Sincerely,
James C. Leonard III,
Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.
[FR Doc. E4-407 Filed 2-25-04; 8:45 am]