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

included in computed value only to the extent
that such value has been charged to the producer.
Packing Costs. The cost of all containers and
coverings of whatever nature, and of packing,
whether for labor or material, used in placing
merchandise in condition and packed ready for
shipment to the United States is included in
computed value.
Under computed value, “merchandise of
the same class or kind” must be imported from
the same country as the merchandise being
appraised and must be within a group or range
of goods produced by a particular industry or
industry sector. Whether certain merchandise is
of the same class or kind as other merchandise
will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
In determining usual profit and general
expenses, sales for export to the United States
of the narrowest group or range of merchandise
that includes the merchandise being
appraised will be examined, providing that the
necessary information can be obtained.
NOTE: As a point of contrast, under deductive
value, “merchandise of the same class or kind”
includes merchandise imported from other
countries besides the country from which the
merchandise being appraised was imported.
Under computed value, “merchandise of the
same class or kind” is limited to merchandise
imported from the same country as the merchandise
being appraised.
VALUE IF OTHER VALUES
CANNOT BE DETERMINED
If none of the previous five values can be
used to appraise the imported merchandise,
then the customs value must be based on a
value derived from one of the five previous
methods, reasonably adjusted as necessary. The
value so determined should be based, to the
greatest extent possible, on previously determined
values. In order for Customs to consider
an importer’s argument regarding appraisement,
the information upon which the argument
is based must be made available to Customs,
whether it was generated by a foreign or
domestic source. Some examples of how the
other methods can be reasonably adjusted are:
Identical Merchandise (or Similar Merchandise).
1. The requirement that the identical merchandise
(or similar merchandise) should
be exported at or about the same time as
the merchandise being appraised could be
flexibly interpreted.
2. Identical imported merchandise (or similar
imported merchandise) produced in a
country other than the country of exportation
of the merchandise being appraised
could be the basis for customs valuation.
3. Customs values of identical imported merchandise
(or similar imported merchandise)
already determined on the basis of
deductive value and computed value
could be used.
Deductive Method. The 90-day requirement
may be administered flexibly (19 CFR
152.107(c)).
The origin of merchandise that is imported
into the customs territory of the United States
can affect the rate of duty, entitlement for special
programs, admissibility, quota, antidumping
or countervailing duties, procurement
by government agencies and marking
requirements. In order to determine a product’s
32. RULES OF ORIGIN
country of origin, the importer should consult
the applicable rules of origin.
There are two basic types of rules of
origin: non-preferential and preferential. Nonpreferential
rules generally apply in the
absence of bilateral or multilateral trade agreements.
Preferential rules are applied to merchandise
to determine its eligibility for special
treatment under various trade agreements or
special legislation such as the Generalized
System of Preferences (GSP), the North Amer-
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