INTERNATIONAL TRADE: NORTH AMERICAN FREE TRADE AGREEMENT ("NAFTA")

INTERNATIONAL TRADE: NORTH AMERICAN FREE TRADE AGREEMENT ("NAFTA"): By Norka M. Schell International Law Lawyer Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC Tel. (212)564-1589 In a global economy, the movement of...

NORTH AMERICAN FREE TRADE AGREEMENT ("NAFTA")

By Norka M. Schell
International Law Lawyer
Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
Tel. (212)564-1589

In a global economy, the movement of persons across the borders is critical to the movement of goods and facilitation of investments. The United States-Canada Free Trade Agreement ("FTA"), implemented on January 1, 1989, provided for the freer movement not only of goods but also of business persons. With the North American Free Trade Agreement ("NAFTA"), implemented on January 1, 1994, the United States and Canada included Mexico in their preferential trading relationship. The goal of NAFTA is to eliminate all customs duties on all goods originating in Canada, Mexico, or the United States over a transition period. 

The purpose of NAFTA is to eliminate all customs duties on all goods originating in Canada, Mexico, or the United States over a transition period. 

As of January 1, 2008, all tariffs and quotas were eliminated on U.S. exports to Mexico and Canada under the NAFTA. 

The NAFTA provides coverage to services with the exception of aviation transport, maritime, and basic communications. The agreement also provide intellectual property rights protection in patent, trademark, and copyrighted material.

With regard to the movement of persons, the purpose of NAFTA is not to harmonize immigration regimes or create a common labor market or a passport union among the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Rather, each of the three countries intends to maintain its sovereignty over immigration to protect its domestic labor market. The NAFTA provisions affect only four categories of the business persons: (1) business visitors - admitted as 
B-1s; (2) traders and investors - admitted as E-1s and E-2s; (3) intra-company transferees - admitted as L-1s; and (4) professional - admitted as TNs.  

For more information on NAFTA, please contact our firm to speak with a lawyer. 

INTERNATIONAL TRADE: DON'T LET YOUR BUSINESS IMPORT TROUBLE

INTERNATIONAL TRADE: DON'T LET YOUR BUSINESS IMPORT TROUBLE: By:  Norka M. Schell        NYC International Lawyer        Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC        11 Broadway, Suite 615        New...

DON'T LET YOUR BUSINESS IMPORT TROUBLE

By:  Norka M. Schell
       NYC International Lawyer
       Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC
       11 Broadway, Suite 615
       New York, NY 10004
       Tel. (212)564-1589
       www.lawschell.com

With very few exceptions, all goods imported into the United States must be declared with the United States Customs Service and are subject to duties under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). Duties vary with the type of merchandise, its value, its origin, and a number of other factors. Penalties for violating Customs laws or procedures can be quite substantial.

Despite the very high duties (which may be higher than the corporate tax rate), few importers give Customs law questions the same thought spent on tax planning or other issues. This is a mistake. The reality for any importer is that duties and fines imposed for Customs law violations add an extra layer of cost to the item imported and correspondingly reduce the item's competitive worth in the domestic marketplace.

The combination of GATT, NAFTA, and the Customs Modernization Act has made some of the most substantial changes in Customs law in years; and new regulations with substantial changes in Customs procedures are coming out almost daily.

If you do any significant volume of importing business, the Law Offices of Norka M. Schell, LLC can assist you. Our lawyers are creative and resourceful. Contact our Firm at (212)564-1589 to schedule a consultation with a lawyer.

FORMER RABOBANK TRADER PLEADS GUILTY FOR SCHEME TO MANIPULATE YEN LIBOR

Posted by NYC Attorney Norka M. Schell

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CRM

TUESDAY, JUNE 10, 2014 (202) 514-2007 

WWW.JUSTICE.GOV 

FORMER RABOBANK TRADER PLEADS GUILTY

FOR SCHEME TO MANIPULATE YEN LIBOR

WASHINGTON – A former Coöperatieve Centrale Raiffeisen-Boerenleenbank B.A. (Rabobank) Japanese Yen derivatives trader pleaded guilty today for his role in a conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud by manipulating Rabobank’s Yen London InterBank Offered Rate (LIBOR) submissions to benefit his trading positions.

Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of theJustice Department’s Criminal Division, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brent Snyder of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division and Assistant Director in Charge Valerie Parlave of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.

Today, a criminal information was filed in the Southern District of New York charging Takayuki Yagami, a Japanese national, with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud. Yagami pleaded guilty to the information before United States District Judge Jed S. Rakoff in the Southern District of New York.

“With this guilty plea, we take another significant step to hold accountable those who fraudulently manipulated the world’s cornerstone benchmark interest rate for financial gain,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “This conduct distorted transactions and financial products around the world. Manipulating LIBOR effectively rigs the global financial system, compromising the fairness of world markets. This plea demonstrates that the Justice Department will never waver, and we will never rest, in our determination to ensure the integrity of the marketplace and protect it from fraud.”

Today, a criminal information was filed in the Southern District of New York charging Takayuki Yagami, a Japanese national, with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud. Yagami pleaded guilty to the information before United States District Judge Jed S. Rakoff in the Southern District of New York.

“With this guilty plea, we take another significant step to hold accountable those who fraudulently manipulated the world’s cornerstone benchmark interest rate for financial gain,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “This conduct distorted transactions and financial products around the world. Manipulating LIBOR effectively rigs the global financial system, compromising the fairness of world markets. This plea demonstrates that the Justice Department will never waver, and we will never rest, in our determination to ensure the integrity of the marketplace and protect it from fraud.”

“Manipulating financial trading markets to create an unfair advantage is against the law,” said Assistant Director in Charge Parlave. “Today’s guilty plea further underscores the FBI’s ability to investigate complex international financial crimes and bring the perpetrators to justice.

The Washington Field Office has committed significant time and resources including the expertise of Special Agents, forensic accountants and analysts to investigate this case along with our Department of Justice colleagues. Their efforts send a clear message to anyone contemplating financial crimes: think twice or you will face the consequences.”  See release here.

INTERNATIONAL TRADE: Import duty & taxes when importing into the United...

INTERNATIONAL TRADE: Import duty & taxes when importing into the United...: Posted by: Norka M. Schell,  International Lawyer Law Offices Of Norka M. Schell, LLC www.lawschell.com Import duty and taxes are ...

Import duty & taxes when importing into the United States

Posted by: Norka M. Schell, International Lawyer

Law Offices Of Norka M. Schell, LLC

www.lawschell.com

Import duty and taxes are due when importing goods into the United States whether by a private individual or a business entity.  The valuation method is FOB (Free on Board), which means that the import duty and taxes payable are calculated exclusively on the value of the imported goods.  However, some duties may be based part in value and part in quantity. In addition to duty, imports may be subject to a Merchandise Processing Fee, and in some cases to sales tax, and Federal Excise Tax.

Duty Rates vary from 0% to 37.5%, with the average duty rate being 5.63%. 

 Preferential duty rates - United States has signed Free Trade Agreements ("FTA") with a number of countries. To be entitled to preferential tariff treatment, a good must meet the "originating" criteria as set out on the Rules of Origin of individual FTAs.  A Certificate of Origin (COO) is required upon importation for preferential duty rates to apply. 

Sales tax is not automatically charged on imported goods.  However, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) declarations are made available to state tax representatives that may occasionally claim state taxes from the importer. 

Minimum thresholds - Duty is not charged if the value of the imported goods is up to US$200.

Other taxes and custom fees - Customs and Border Patrol (CPB) collects federal taxes and fees on behalf of other federal agencies, like the Internal Revenue Service, depending on the commodity being imported.  User fees depend on the type of entry and mode of transportation.

* Federal Excise tax is imposed on imports of alcoholic beverages and tobacco.

* Merchandise Processing Fee (MPF) is charged on formal and informal entries:

- MPF on informal entries is US $2, US$6, or US$9 per shipment, depending on whether the entry release is manual or automated, and whether it is prepared by CBP personnel.

- MPF on formal entries (for imports of goods valued over US$2500) is set at 0.3464% of the value of the goods with a minimum charge of US$25 and a maximum of US$485.

Finally, in case of overpayment of duty or returns of imported products to the seller, the importer might be entitled to a duty refund.  

More information on import duty and taxes when importing into the United States, please contact the Law Offices Of Norka M. Schell, LLC at (212)564-1589.