Consolidation and Amendment of Export Visa Requirements to Include the Electronic Visa Information System for Certain Cotton, Wool and Man-Made Fiber Textile Products Produced or Manufactured in Singapore

COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS

Consolidation and Amendment of Export Visa Requirements to

Include the Electronic Visa Information System for Certain Cotton, Wool

and Man-Made Fiber Textile Products Produced or Manufactured in

Singapore

December 9, 1996.

AGENCY: Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA).

ACTION: Issuing a directive to the Commissioner of Customs

consolidating and amending visa requirements.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

EFFECTIVE DATE: January 1, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Janet Heinzen, International Trade

Specialist, Office of Textiles and Apparel, U.S. Department of

Commerce, (202) 482-4212.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Authority: Executive Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, as amended;

section 204 of the Agricultural Act of 1956, as amended (7 U.S.C.

1854); Uruguay Round Agreements Act.

In an exchange of notes dated November 8, 1996 and November 26,

1996, the Governments of the United States and Singapore agreed to

amend the existing visa arrangement for textile products, produced or

manufactured in Singapore and exported on and after January 1, 1997.

The amended arrangement consolidates existing and new provisions of the

export visa arrangement, including provisions for the Electronic Visa

Information System (ELVIS). In addition to the ELVIS requirements,

shipments will continue to be accompanied by an original visa stamped

on the front of the original commercial invoice issued by the

Government of the Republic of Singapore.

In the letter published below, the Chairman of CITA directs the

Commissioner of Customs to amend the existing visa requirements for

textile products produced or manufactured in Singapore and exported on

and after January 1, 1997.

A description of the textile and apparel categories in terms of HTS

numbers is available in the CORRELATION: Textile and Apparel Categories

with the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (see Federal

Register notice 60 FR 65299, published on December 19, 1995). Also see

47 FR 6683, published on February 16, 1982; and 60 FR 56576, published

on November 9, 1995. Information

[[Page 65549]]

regarding the 1997 CORRELATION will be published in the Federal

Register at a later date.

Interested persons are advised to take all necessary steps to

ensure that textile products that are entered into the United States

for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, will meet

the visa requirements set forth in the letter published below to the

Commissioner of Customs.

D. Michael Hutchinson,

Acting Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile

Agreements.

Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements

December 9, 1996.

Commissioner of Customs,

Department of the Treasury, Washington, DC 20229.

Dear Commissioner: This directive amends, but does not cancel,

the directive issued to you on February 10, 1982, as amended, by the

Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements,

that directed you to prohibit entry of certain cotton, wool and man-

made fiber textile products, produced or manufactured in Singapore

for which the Government of the Republic of Singapore has not issued

an appropriate export visa.

Under the terms of section 204 of the Agricultural Act of 1956,

as amended (7 U.S.C. 1854); pursuant to the Export Visa Arrangement,

effected by exchange of notes dated November 8 and November 26, 1996

between the Governments of the United States and the Republic of

Singapore; and in accordance with the provisions of Executive Order

11651 of March 3, 1972, as amended, you are directed to prohibit,

effective on January 1, 1997, entry into the Customs territory of

the United States (i.e., the 50 states, the District of Columbia and

the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico) for consumption and withdrawal from

warehouse for consumption of cotton, wool and man-made fiber textile

products in Categories 200-239, 300-369, 400-469 and 600-670,

including part categories, produced or manufactured in Singapore and

exported on and after January 1, 1997 for which the Government of

the Republic of Singapore has not issued an appropriate export visa

and ELVIS (Electronic Visa Information System) transmission fully

described below. Should additional categories or part categories

become subject to import quota the entire category(s) or part

category(s) shall be included in the coverage of this arrangement.

A visa must accompany each commercial shipment of the

aforementioned textile products. A circular stamped marking in blue

ink will appear on the front of the original commercial invoice. The

original visa shall not be stamped on duplicate copies of the

invoice. The original invoice with the original visa stamp will be

required to enter the shipment into the United States. Duplicates of

the invoice and/or visa may not be used for this purpose.

Each visa stamp shall include the following information:

1. The visa number. The visa number shall be in the standard

nine digit letter format, beginning with one numerical digit for the

last digit of the year of export, followed by the two character

alpha country code specified by the International Organization for

Standardization (ISO) (the code for Singapore is ``SG''), and a six

digit numerical serial number identifying the shipment; e.g.,

7SG123456.

2. The date of issuance. The date of issuance shall be the day,

month and year on which the visa was issued.

3. The original signature of the issuing official of the

Government of the Republic of Singapore.

4. The correct category(s), part category(s), quantity(s) and

unit(s) of quantity in the shipment as set forth in the U.S.

Department of Commerce Correlation and in the Harmonized Tariff

Schedule of the United States, annotated or successor documents

shall be reported in the spaces provided within the visa stamp

(e.g., ``Cat. 340-510 DOZ'').

Quantities must be stated in whole numbers. Decimals or

fractions will not be accepted.

U.S. Customs shall not permit entry if the shipment does not

have a visa, or if the visa number, date of issuance, signature,

category, quantity or units of quantity are missing, incorrect or

illegible, or have been crossed out or altered in any way. If the

quantity indicated on the visa is less than that of the shipment,

entry shall not be permitted. If the quantity indicated on the visa

is more than that of the shipment, entry shall be permitted and only

the amount entered shall be charged to any applicable quota.

If the visa is not acceptable then a new correct visa or a visa

waiver must be presented to the U.S. Customs Service before any

portion of the shipment will be released. A visa waiver may be

issued by the U.S. Department of Commerce at the request of the

Embassy in Washington for the Government of the Republic of

Singapore. The waiver, if used, only waives the requirement to

present a visa with the shipment. It does not waive the quota

requirements. Visa waivers will only be issued for classification

purposes or for one time special purpose shipments that are not part

of an ongoing commercial enterprise.

If the visaed invoice is deficient, the U.S. Customs Service

will not return the original document after entry, but will provide

a certified copy of that visaed invoice for use in obtaining a new

correct original visaed invoice, or a visa waiver.

ELVIS Requirements:

A. Each ELVIS message will include the following information:

i. The visa number. The visa number shall be in the standard

nine digit letter format, beginning with one numerical digit for the

last digit of the year of export, followed by the two character

alpha country code specified by the International Organization for

Standardization (ISO) (the code for Singapore is ``SG''), and a six

digit numerical serial number identifying the shipment; e.g.,

7SG123456.

ii. The date of issuance. The date of issuance shall be the day,

month and year on which the visa was issued.

iii. The correct category(s), part category(s), quantity(s) and

unit(s) of quantity in the shipment as set forth in the U.S.

Department of Commerce Correlation and in the Harmonized Tariff

Schedule of the United States, annotated or successor documents.

iv. The manufacturer ID number (MID). The MID shall begin with

`SG,' followed by the first three characters from each of the first

two words of the name of the manufacturer, followed by the largest

number on the address line up to the first four digits, followed by

three letters from the city name.

B. Entry of a shipment shall not be permitted:

i. if an ELVIS transmission has not been received for the

shipment from Singapore;

ii. if the ELVIS transmission for that shipment is missing any

of the following:

a. visa number

b. category or part category

c. quantity

d. unit of measure

e. date of issuance

f. manufacturer ID number

iii. if the ELVIS transmission for the shipment does not match

the information supplied by the importer with regard to any of the

following:

a. visa number

b. category or part category

c. unit of measure

iv. if the quantity being entered is greater than the quantity

transmitted.

v. if the visa number has previously been used, except in the

case of a split shipment, or canceled, except when an entry has

already been made using the visa number.

C. A new, correct ELVIS transmission from Singapore is required

before a shipment that has been denied entry for one of the

circumstances mentioned in paragraph 3.B.i-v will be released.

D. Visa waivers will only be considered for paragraph 3.B.i., if

the shipment qualifies as a one-time special purpose shipment that

is not part of an ongoing commercial enterprise.

E. Shipments will not be released for forty-eight hours or 2

calendar days in the event of a system failure. If system failure

exceeds forty-eight hours or 2 calendar days, for the remaining

period of the system failure the U.S. Customs Service will release

shipments on the basis of the paper visaed document.

F. If import quotas are in force, U.S. Customs Service shall

charge only the actual quantity in the shipment to the correct

category limit. If a shipment from Singapore has been allowed entry

into the commerce of the United States with either an incorrect

visa, no visa, an incorrect ELVIS transmission, or no ELVIS

transmission, and redelivery is requested but cannot be made, and

after the Government of the Republic of Singapore does not issue a

visa or ELVIS transmission or request a visa waiver (if applicable),

the shipment will be charged to the correct category limit whether

or not a replacement visa or waiver is provided or a new ELVIS

message is transmitted.

Other Provisions.

Merchandise imported for the personal use of the importer and

not for resale, regardless of value, and properly marked commercial

sample shipments valued at U.S.$250 or less, do not require an

export visa or ELVIS

[[Page 65550]]

transmission for entry and shall not be charged to agreement levels,

if applicable.

The visa stamp remains unchanged.

The actions taken concerning the Government of the Republic of

Singapore with respect to imports of textiles and textile products

in the foregoing categories have been determined by the Committee

for the Implementation of Textile Agreements to involve foreign

affairs functions of the United States. Therefore, these directions

to the Commissioner of Customs, which are necessary for the

implementation of such actions, fall within the foreign affairs

exception to the rulemaking provisions of 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1). This

letter will be published in the Federal Register.

Sincerely,

D. Michael Hutchinson,

Acting Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile

Agreements.

[FR Doc. 96-31701 Filed 12-12-96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510-DR-F