As you may already know, the Miscellaneous Tariff Bill (MTB) and Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program are scheduled to expire on December 31, 2020. As a result, imports entering the US that were previously eligible for MTB and/or duty-free treatment under GSP are subject to regular duty rates beginning January 1, 2021.

GSP authorization has expired on several previous occasions – most recently in 2017. In the past, when Congress acted to extend the program, it applied duty-free treatment to GSP-eligible products retroactively to the expiration of the program, thereby allowing importers to seek refunds of duties paid. Although it is not known whether any future action on GSP will occur, experts believe that it is likely for the program to be renewed at some point in 2021.

Despite its failure to renew the MTB and GSP benefits program, Congress is expected to pass an end-of-year legislative package modifying the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). Click here to view the proposed changes to the USMCA expected to pass later today.

We encourage any importers with questions related to GSP, MTB or USMCA to contact the Shapiro Compliance Team.

Shapiro will continue to monitor the situation and provide status updates as they become available.