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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 126 / Tuesday, July 6, 2021 / Rules and Regulations
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countrys customs administration, when conducting a verification under USMCA
Article 5.9, to perform detailed verifications of the documentation and records to verify the information on the basis of which the certification of origin was completed and the claim for preferential tariff treatment was made.
Importers, exporters, and producers that are required to maintain records pursuant to USMCA Article 5.8.1 and 5.8.2 must make those records available for inspection by an officer of the USMCA countrys customs administration conducting a verification, and in the case of a verification visit, provide facilities for that inspection.
The Uniform Regulations regarding origin procedures also clarify that, where a USMCA countrys customs administration is conducting a verification of a good under USMCA
Article 5.9, the customs administration may conduct an origin verification of a material that is used in the production of that good. The verification of that material is expected to be conducted in accordance with certain USMCA
procedures. The Uniform Regulations regarding origin procedures enumerate the specific USMCA articles and Uniform Regulations regarding origin procedures paragraphs that apply to the verification of materials.4 The USMCA
countrys customs administration may, during a verification of a material that is used in the production of a good, consider the material to be nonoriginating in determining whether the good is an originating good, if the producer or supplier of that material does not allow the customs administration access to information required to make a determination of whether the material is originating by denying access to its records; failing to respond to a verification questionnaire or letter; or refusing to consent to a verification visit within the required time.
After the verification is conducted, the USMCA country must provide the importer, and the exporter or producer that completed the certification of origin and is the subject of the verification, 4 See Uniform Regulations regarding origin procedures, Origin Verifications Section, paragraph 10, which states that where the customs administration of a USMCA country, in conducting an origin verification of a good imported into its territory under USMCA Article 5.9, conducts an origin verification of a material that is used in the production of the good, the origin verification of that material is expected to be conducted in accordance with the procedures set out in: USMCA
Article 5.91, 5, 7 through 11, 13, and 18; and paragraphs 3, 6, 13, 14, and 15 of the Origin Verifications Section of the Uniform Regulations regarding origin procedures.

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with a written determination of origin that includes the findings of facts and the legal basis for the determination. See USMCA Article 5.9.14. Prior to issuing this determination of origin, if the USMCA country intends to deny USMCA preferential tariff treatment, the USMCA country must inform the importer, and any exporter or producer who is the subject of the verification and provided information during the verification, of the preliminary results of the verification and a notice of intent to deny that includes when the denial would be effective and a period of at least 30 days for the submission of additional information, including documents, related to the originating status of the good. See USMCA Article 5.9.16. The reasons that a USMCA
country may deny USMCA preferential tariff treatment are set forth in USMCA
Article 5.10.2. Additionally, in accordance with USMCA Article 5.9.17, if a verification indicates a pattern of conduct by an importer, exporter, or producer of false or unsupported representations that a good imported into the countrys territory qualifies as an originating good, the USMCA
country may withhold preferential tariff treatment to identical goods imported, exported, or produced by such person until that person establishes compliance with USMCA Chapters 4, 5, and 6.
Section 207a1A of the USMCA
Act 19 U.S.C. 4533a1A provides the Secretary of the Treasury with the authority to conduct a verification, pursuant to USMCA Article 5.9, of whether a good is an originating good under section 202 of the USMCA Act 19 U.S.C. 4531 or section 202A of the USMCA Act 19 U.S.C. 4532. Section 207b of the USMCA Act 19 U.S.C.
4533b1 sets forth the basis for a negative determination of origin that applies to verifications conducted under USMCA Chapter 5. Specifically, section 207b of the USMCA Act provides that a negative determination is a determination by the Secretary that a claim by the importer, exporter, or producer that the good qualifies as an originating good under 19 U.S.C. 4531 is inaccurate; that the good does not qualify for preferential tariff treatment under the USMCA because the importer, exporter, or producer failed to respond to a request for information or failed to provide sufficient information to determine that the good qualifies as an originating good; after receipt of a notification of a verification visit, the exporter or producer did not provide written consent for the visit; the importer, exporter, or producer does not maintain, or denies access to, records or
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documentation required under section 5081 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended 19 U.S.C. 15081; or the importer, exporter, or producer otherwise fails to comply with the requirements of section 207 of the USMCA Act or, based on the preponderance of the evidence, circumvents the requirements of section 207 of the USMCA Act. Section 207c1 of the USMCA Act 19 U.S.C.
4533c1 provides that, upon making a negative determination, the Secretary may deny preferential tariff treatment under the USMCA with respect to the good while section 207c2 of the USMCA Act 19 U.S.C. 4533c2
allows the Secretary to withhold preferential tariff treatment for identical goods based on a pattern of conduct.
To address these general USMCA
verification and determination of origin requirements and procedures, CBP has included subpart G, Origin Verifications and Determinations, in part 182 of title 19 of the CFR.
C. Marking Rules Section 304a of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended 19 U.S.C. 1304, provides that, unless excepted, every article of foreign origin imported into the United States shall be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly, and permanently as the nature of the article or container will permit in such manner as to indicate to an ultimate purchaser in the United States the English name of the country of origin of the article. The regulations issued under the authority of section 304 to implement the country of origin marking requirements are set forth in 19
CFR part 134. Part 134 identifies the articles subject to marking, the methods and manner of marking that should be used, the exceptions to the marking requirements, the marking requirements for containers or holders, and the procedures for articles found not legally marked.
CBP employs two primary methods for determining the country of origin for marking purposes when imported goods are processed in, or contain materials from, more than one country. One method uses case-by-case adjudication to determine whether the goods have been substantially transformed in a particular country. The other method consists of codified rules, also used to determine whether the goods have been substantially transformed, primarily expressed through a change in the HTSUS classification, often referred to as a tariff shift.
Part 134 sets forth the country of origin marking requirements and exceptions. Section 134.1b defines
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