Goods made with hardwood plywood and imported from China may be hit with antidumping and countervailing duties as a result of increased scrutiny by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
The AD and CV duty orders on hardwood plywood products from China went into effect Jan. 4, 2018. The goods subject to these orders are hardwood and decorative plywood and certain veneered panels. All hardwood plywood is included within the scope of these orders regardless of (1) whether or not the face and/or back veneers are surface coated or covered, (2) whether or not such surface coatings or covers obscure the grain, textures, or markings of the wood, (3) whether the plywood is trimmed, cut-to-size, notched, punched, or drilled or has undergone other forms of minor processing, (4) dimension, and (5) further processing in a third country.
According to Kristen Smith, who heads Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg’s Trade Remedies Practices, the International Trade Administration is now holding that some cabinet and furniture products made of hardwood plywood that were previously considered excluded from the scope of these orders are in fact covered if they are not imported in a single box. As a result, importers of such goods face significant duty liability, with current AD duty rates at 171.55 percent to 183.36 percent and CV duty rates at 22.98 percent to 194.90 percent.
Affected companies have until Jan. 31 to request administrative reviews of these orders in an effort to lower these duty rates. It is unlikely this deadline will be extended despite the ongoing federal government shutdown, Smith says.
For more information on this development and whether your imports are affected, please contact Kristen Smith at (202) 730-4965.