[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 19, Volume 1]

[Revised as of April 1, 2005]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 19CFR7.3]



[Page 80-82]

 

                        TITLE 19--CUSTOMS DUTIES

 

   CHAPTER I--BUREAU OF CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION, DEPARTMENT OF 

              HOMELAND SECURITY; DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

 

PART 7_CUSTOMS RELATIONS WITH INSULAR POSSESSIONS AND GUANTANAMO BAY 

NAVAL STATION--Table of Contents

 

Sec.  7.3  Duty-free treatment of goods imported from insular 

possessions of the United States other than Puerto Rico.



    (a) General. Under the provisions of General Note 3(a)(iv), 

Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), the following 

goods may be eligible for duty-free treatment when imported into the 

customs territory of the United States from an insular possession of the 

United States:

    (1) Except as provided in Additional U.S. Note 5 to Chapter 91, 

HTSUS, and except as provided in Additional U.S. Note 2 to Chapter 96, 

HTSUS, and except as provided in section 423 of the Tax Reform Act of 

1986, as amended (19 U.S.C. 2703 note), goods which are the growth or 

product of any such insular possession, and goods which were 

manufactured or produced in any such insular possession from materials 

that were the growth, product or manufacture of any such insular 

possession or of the customs territory of the United States, or of both, 

provided that such goods:

    (i) Do not contain foreign materials valued at either more than 70 

percent of the total value of the goods or, in the case of goods 

described in section 213(b) of the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act 

(19 U.S.C. 2703(b)), more than 50 percent of the total value of the 

goods; and

    (ii) Come to the customs territory of the United States directly 

from any such insular possession; and

    (2) Goods previously imported into the customs territory of the 

United States with payment of all applicable duties and taxes imposed 

upon or by reason of importation, provided that:

    (i) The goods were shipped from the United States directly to the 

insular possession and are returned from the insular possession to the 

United States by direct shipment; and

    (ii) There was no remission, refund or drawback of such duties or 

taxes in connection with the shipment of the goods from the United 

States to the insular possession.

    (b) Origin of goods. For purposes of this section, goods shall be 

considered to be the growth or product of, or manufactured or produced 

in, an insular possession if:

    (1) The goods are wholly the growth or product of the insular 

possession; or

    (2) The goods became a new and different article of commerce as a 

result of production or manufacture performed in the insular possession.

    (c) Foreign materials. For purposes of this section, the term 

``foreign materials'' covers any material incorporated in goods 

described in paragraph (b)(2) of this section other than:

    (1) A material which was wholly the growth or product of an insular 

possession or of the customs territory of the United States;

    (2) A material which was substantially transformed in an insular 

possession or in the customs territory of the United States into a new 

and different article of commerce which was then used in an insular 

possession in the production or manufacture of a new and different 

article which is shipped directly to the United States; or

    (3) A material which may be imported into the customs territory of 

the United States from a foreign country and entered free of duty 

either:

    (i) At the time the goods which incorporate the material are 

entered; or

    (ii) At the time the material is imported into the insular 

possession, provided that the material was incorporated into the goods 

during the 18-month period after the date on which the material was 

imported into the insular possession.

    (d) Foreign materials value limitation. For purposes of this 

section, the determination of whether goods contain foreign materials 

valued at more than 70 or 50 percent of the total value of the goods 

shall be made based on a comparison between:



[[Page 81]]



    (1) The landed cost of the foreign materials, consisting of:

    (i) The manufacturer's actual cost for the materials or, where a 

material is provided to the manufacturer without charge or at less than 

fair market value, the sum of all expenses incurred in the growth, 

production, or manufacture of the material, including general expenses, 

plus an amount for profit; and

    (ii) The cost of transporting those materials to the insular 

possession, but excluding any duties or taxes assessed on the materials 

by the insular possession and any charges which may accrue after 

landing; and

    (2) The final appraised value of the goods imported into the customs 

territory of the United States, as determined in accordance with section 

402 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1401a).

    (e) Direct shipment--(1) General. For purposes of this section, 

goods shall be considered to come to the United States directly from an 

insular possession, or to be shipped from the United States directly to 

an insular possession and returned from the insular possession to the 

United States by direct shipment, only if:

    (i) The goods proceed directly to or from the insular possession 

without passing through any foreign territory or country;

    (ii) The goods proceed to or from the insular possession through a 

foreign territory or country, the goods do not enter into the commerce 

of the foreign territory or country while en route to the insular 

possession or the United States, and the invoices, bills of lading, and 

other shipping documents show the insular possession or the United 

States as the final destination; or

    (iii) The goods proceed to or from the insular possession through a 

foreign territory or country, the invoices and other shipping documents 

do not show the insular possession or the United States as the final 

destination, and the goods:

    (A) Remained under the control of the customs authority of the 

foreign territory or country;

    (B) Did not enter into the commerce of the foreign territory or 

country except for the purpose of sale other than at retail, and the 

port director is satisfied that the importation into the insular 

possession or the United States results from the original commercial 

transaction between the importer and the producer or the latter's sales 

agent; and

    (C) Were not subjected to operations in the foreign territory or 

country other than loading and unloading and other activities necessary 

to preserve the goods in good condition.

    (2) Evidence of direct shipment. The port director may require that 

appropriate shipping papers, invoices, or other documents be submitted 

within 60 days of the date of entry as evidence that the goods were 

shipped to the United States directly from an insular possession or 

shipped from the United States directly to an insular possession and 

returned from the insular possession to the United States by direct 

shipment within the meaning of paragraph (e)(1) of this section, and 

such evidence of direct shipment shall be subject to such verification 

as deemed necessary by the port director. Evidence of direct shipment 

shall not be required when the port director is otherwise satisfied, 

taking into consideration the kind and value of the merchandise, that 

the goods qualify for duty-free treatment under General Note 3(a)(iv), 

HTSUS, and paragraph (a) of this section.

    (f) Documentation. (1) When goods are sought to be admitted free of 

duty as provided in paragraph (a)(1) of this section, there shall be 

filed with the entry/entry summary a properly completed certificate of 

origin on Customs Form 3229, signed by the chief or assistant chief 

customs officer or other official responsible for customs administration 

at the port of shipment, showing that the goods comply with the 

requirements for duty-free entry set forth in paragraph (a)(1) of this 

section. Except in the case of goods which incorporate a material 

described in paragraph (c)(3)(ii) of this section, a certificate of 

origin shall not be required for any shipment eligible for informal 

entry under Sec.  143.21 of this chapter or in any case where the port 

director is otherwise satisfied that the goods qualify for duty-free 

treatment under paragraph (a)(1) of this section.



[[Page 82]]



    (2) When goods in a shipment not eligible for informal entry under 

Sec.  143.21 of this chapter are sought to be admitted free of duty as 

provided in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, the following declarations 

shall be filed with the entry/entry summary unless the port director is 

satisfied by reason of the nature of the goods or otherwise that the 

goods qualify for such duty-free entry:

    (i) A declaration by the shipper in the insular possession in 

substantially the following form:



    I, -------------------- (name) of -------------------- 

(organization) do hereby declare that to the best of my knowledge and 

belief the goods identified below were sent directly from the United 

States on ------------, 19----, to -------------------- (name) of ------

-------------- (organization) on -------------------- (insular 

possession) via the -------------------- (name of carrier) and that the 

goods remained in said insular possession until shipped by me directly 

to the United States via the -------------------- (name of carrier) on 

------------, 19----.



----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                 Marks                      Numbers        Quantity            Description             Value

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------













----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



    Dated at ----------------, this -------- day of ------------, 19--

--.

Signature:______________________________________________________________



    (ii) A declaration by the importer in the United States in 

substantially the following form:



    I, -------------------- (name), of -------------------- 

(organization) declare that the (above) (attached) declaration by the 

shipper in the insular possession is true and correct to the best of my 

knowledge and belief, that the goods in question were previously 

imported into the customs territory of the United States and were 

shipped to the insular possession from the United States without 

remission, refund or drawback of any duties or taxes paid in connection 

with that prior importation, and that the goods arrived in the United 

States directly from the insular possession via the -------------------- 

(name of carrier) on ------------, 19----.



________________________________________________________________________

(Date)



________________________________________________________________________

(Signature)



    (g) Warehouse withdrawals; drawback. Merchandise may be withdrawn 

from a bonded warehouse under section 557 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as 

amended (19 U.S.C. 1557), for shipment to any insular possession of the 

United States other than Puerto Rico without payment of duty, or with a 

refund of duty if the duties have been paid, in like manner as for 

exportation to foreign countries. No drawback may be allowed under 

section 313 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1313), on 

goods manufactured or produced in the United States and shipped to any 

insular possession. No drawback of internal-revenue tax is allowable 

under 19 U.S.C. 1313 on goods manufactured or produced in the United 

States with the use of domestic tax-paid alcohol and shipped to Wake 

Island, Midway Islands or Johnston Atoll.



[T.D. 97-75, 62 FR 46439, Sept. 3, 1997]