Importing into the United States - Indo-American Chamber Of ...

If the change required by this determination
results in a rate of duty more favorable to an
importer, the entry is liquidated accordingly
and a refund is authorized for the applicable
amount of the deposited estimated duties. On
the other hand, a change may be necessary
which imposes a higher rate of duty. For
example, a claim for an exemption from duty
under a free-rate provision or under a conditional
exemption may be found to be insufficient
for lack of the required supporting documentation.
In this situation, the importer will
be given an advance notice of the proposed
duty rate increase and an opportunity to validate
the claim for a free rate or more favorable
rate of duty.
If the importer does not respond to the
notice, or if the response is found to be without
merit, entry is liquidated in accordance with
the entry as corrected, and the importer is
billed for the additional duty. The port may
find that the importer’s response raises issues
of such complexity that resolution is warranted
by a Customs Headquarters decision through
the internal advice procedure. Internal advice
from Customs Headquarters may be requested
by local Customs officers on their own initiative
or in response to a request by the importer.
PROTESTS
After liquidation, an importer may still
pursue, on Customs Form 19 (19 CFR 174), any
claims for an adjustment or refund by filing a
protest within 90 days after liquidation. In
order to apply for a Headquarters ruling, a
request for further review must be filed with
the protest. The same Form 19 can be used for
this purpose. If filed separately, application for
further review must still be filed within 90 days
of liquidation. However, if a ruling on the question
has previously been issued in response to a
request for a decision on a prospective transaction
or a request for internal advice, further
review will ordinarily be denied. If a protest is
denied, an importer has the right to litigate the
matter by filing a summons with the U.S. Court
of International Trade within 180 days after
denial of the protest. The rules of the court and
other applicable statutes and precedents determine
the course of customs litigation.
While the Customs Service’s ascertainment
of dutiable status is final for most purposes
at the time of liquidation, a liquidation is
not final until any protest which has been filed
against it has been decided. Similarly, the
administrative decision issued on a protest is
not final until any litigation filed against it has
become final.
Entries must be liquidated within one year
of the date of entry unless the liquidation needs
to be extended for another one-year period not
to exceed a total of four years from the date of
entry. The Customs Service will suspend liquidation
of an entry when required by statute or
court order. A suspension will remain in effect
until the issue is resolved. Notifications of
extensions and suspensions are given to
importers, surety companies, and customs brokers
who are parties to the transaction.
28. CONVERSION OF CURRENCY
The conversion of foreign currency for
customs purposes must be made in accordance
with the provisions of 31 U.S.C. 5151. This section
states that Customs is to use rates of
exchange determined and certified by the Federal
Reserve Bank of New York. These certified
rates are based on the New York market buying
rates for the foreign currencies involved.
In the case of widely used currencies, rates
of exchange are certified each day.
The rates certified on the first business
day of each calendar quarter are used
throughout the quarter except on days when
fluctuations of five percent or more occur, in
which case the actual certified rates for those
days are used. For infrequently used currencies,
the Federal Reserve Bank of New York certifies
rates of exchanges upon request by Customs.
The rates certified are only for the
currencies and dates requested.
IMPORTING INTO THE UNITED STATES
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