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Maria Vanikiotis is a counsel in the International Trade Group of Crowell & Moring and resident in the firm's New York office.

Maria has experience in a variety of matters related to the movement of goods across international borders, including problem-solving for importers facing Section 232 and Section 301 tariffs, classification of merchandise under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, first sale appraisement programs, free trade agreement origin verifications, country of origin analyses, and other regulatory issues.

Before joining Crowell & Moring, Maria worked for a boutique law firm in New York focusing on customs law and, while in law school, Maria was employed as a summer associate in the Brussels office of a large international law firm on matters related to antitrust and competition law within the European Union. As a law student, Maria published a note comparing collective action approaches to antitrust cases in the U.S., U.K., and E.U., for which she won an award for outstanding legal writing. In addition, Maria was an active and accomplished member of both the Fordham International Law Journal and the Dispute Resolution Society.

On February 3, President Trump confirmed reports of a one-month pause for the implementation of 25% tariffs on imported products of Mexico, following a conversation with President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico during which Sheinbaum agreed to immediately supply 10,000 Mexican National Guardsmen to the U.S.-Mexico border to assist with fentanyl interdiction and illegal migration.

This

On Saturday, February 1, 2025, President Trump signed three Executive Orders (“EOs”) following through with the promised tariffs targeting products of Canada, Mexico and China (the “February 1 EOs”), and the White House issued a supporting informational fact sheet.

The United States will impose 25% tariffs on all products of Mexico and Canada

On his first day in office, President Trump rolled out a sprawling set of directives to the heads of numerous government agencies charged with shaping U.S. trade policy.  While stopping short of enacting new tariffs, the Presidential Memorandum defining an “America First Trade Policy” lays the investigative groundwork for potentially sweeping changes to tariffs and

On January 21, 2025, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) published a notice of proposed rulemaking that would make goods subject to tariffs under Sections 232, 201, and 301 ineligible for the de minimis duty exemption under the Section 321 Program, which allows imported shipments not exceeding $800 to enter the United States duty-free.  To

On October 15, 2024, the Office of the United States Representative (“USTR”) announced a new process for interested parties to request temporary exclusion from Section 301 duties on certain Chinese-origin goods.  The new exclusion process is limited, but key for stakeholders with a nexus to domestic manufacturing in the United States.  Exclusions may apply for

On December 8, Senate Finance Committee members Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) introduced the “Customs Modernization Act of 2023.” The act, which would amend the Tariff Act of 1930 “to strengthen the authorities of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) to enforce the customs and trade laws of the United States,” enhances CBP’s

Main Idea: The regulations used to determine the country of origin of textile and apparel products require the sequential application of rules much like the General Rules of Interpretation (GRIs) in the HTSUS

In ruling N326416 (Feb. 2, 2023), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) determined the country of origin of a prepared painting canvas.

Main Idea: Simple assembly operations will not substantially transform components that give shape and form (i.e., character) to the finished article and define its use.

In ruling N329853 (Jan. 12, 2023), Customs and Border Protection (CBP) considers the country of origin of the Sapper XYZ Arm Assembly (the Sapper).  This product is a monitor mount

Main Idea: CBP has long history of limiting classification of items as furniture in chapter 94, HTSUS, to articles used by humans.

A variety of factors impact a product’s classification under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS).  However, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has long demonstrated that the most important

Main Idea:  Automatic data processing (ADP) system units of heading 8471 must satisfy three criteria: sole or principal use in an ADP system, connectable to processing units, and capable of accepting or delivering data within the system.

In ruling NY N328964 (Nov. 10, 2022), Customs and Border Protection (CBP) discusses the tariff classification of the