On May 10, 2021, U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) Office of Regulations and Rulings issued a denial of a protest in response to a request for an Application for Further Review (AFR) concerning a shipment of cotton garments that were suspected of violating CBP’s Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (“XPCC”) Withhold Release Order (WRO). The WRO prohibits the importation of all cotton and cotton products produced by the XPCC, and its subordinate and affiliated entities. This WRO was issued due to rising concerns over reports of forced labor in Xinjiang.

In response to CBP’s April 9, 2021 exclusion letter, the importer filed the AFR, despite the expiration of the 3-month regulatory deadline. CBP noted that although the importer provided evidence relating to the sale, acquisition, source location, transportation, and delivery of the raw cotton used to produce the subject cotton garments in their March 30, 2021 response, they did not provide any probative evidence to establish that the imported cotton garments were not produced in part by forced labor by the XPCC. The importer had argued that because the raw cotton used to produce the subject cotton garments did not originate from XPCC or, for that matter, in China, they were not subject to the WRO, and should therefore be released.  Specifically, the importer argued that they had provided evidence to establish that the raw cotton used to produce the subject cotton garments was sourced from entities outside of China, specifically three (3) cotton suppliers in Australia, three (3) cotton suppliers in the United States, and one (1) cotton supplier in Brazil; however, the importer “has not provided substantial evidence to establish that the entities within the XPCC that processed that cotton into the subject goods did so without the use of forced labor.”

The ruling explained that in a press release of December 2, 2020, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced that CBP personnel at all U.S. ports of entry “will detain shipments containing cotton and cotton products originating from the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC).” Accordingly, the shipment of cotton garments were excluded for violating the XPCC WRO and the subject goods were deemed inadmissible.

A copy of the ruling is available here.

Crowell & Moring has been successful in modifying WRO orders and obtaining the release of goods subject to a WRO. For more information on actions addressing human rights and forced labor abuses, contact our team and see previous posts below.

Xinjiang Archives | International Trade Law (cmtradelaw.com)

Forced Labor/U.K. Modern Slavery Act Archives | International Trade Law (cmtradelaw.com)

 

Print:
Email this postTweet this postLike this postShare this post on LinkedIn
Photo of John Brew John Brew

John Brew is the co-chair of Crowell & Moring’s International Trade Group and a partner in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office. He has extensive experience in import and export trade regulation, and he regularly advises corporations, trade associations, foreign governments, and non-governmental organizations…

John Brew is the co-chair of Crowell & Moring’s International Trade Group and a partner in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office. He has extensive experience in import and export trade regulation, and he regularly advises corporations, trade associations, foreign governments, and non-governmental organizations on matters involving customs administration, enforcement, compliance, litigation, legislation and policy.

John represents clients in proceedings at the administrative and judicial levels, as well as before Congress and the international bureaucracies that handle customs and trade matters. He advises clients on all substantive import regulatory issues handled by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, such as classification, valuation, origin, marking, tariff preference programs, other agency regulations, admissibility, import restrictions, quotas, drawback, audits, prior disclosures, penalties, investigations, Importer Self Assessment and Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism programs, importations under bond, the Jones Act, vessel repairs, and foreign trade zone matters.

Read more about John Brew
Show more Show less
Photo of Jeffrey L. Snyder Jeffrey L. Snyder
Read more about Jeffrey L. Snyder
Photo of Frances P. Hadfield Frances P. Hadfield

Frances P. Hadfield is a counsel in Crowell & Moring’s International Trade Group in the firm’s New York office. Her practice focuses on forced labor and withhold release orders (WRO), import regulatory compliance, and customs litigation. She regularly advises corporations on matters involving…

Frances P. Hadfield is a counsel in Crowell & Moring’s International Trade Group in the firm’s New York office. Her practice focuses on forced labor and withhold release orders (WRO), import regulatory compliance, and customs litigation. She regularly advises corporations on matters involving customs compliance, audits, customs enforcement, as well as import penalties.

Frances represents clients before the U.S. Court of International Trade and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, as well as in proceedings at the administrative level. She advises corporations on both substantive federal and state regulatory issues that involve U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Federal Trade Commission, Food and Drug Administration, and U.S. Fish & Wildlife in matters pertaining to product admissibility, audits, classification, import restrictions, investigations, marking, licenses, origin, penalties, and tariff preference programs.

Read more about Frances P. Hadfield
Show more Show less
Related Posts
Not Worried About Modern Slavery or Forced Labour Laws? Perhaps You Should Be.
October 2, 2024
New Reports Document Best Practices for Avoiding Uyghur Forced Labor in RE Supply Chains
January 25, 2024
You’re Invited: Tuesdays with Trade Webinar Series
February 22, 2023