Census Proposes New AES Filing Requirement for Foreign Products
The Census Bureau is proposing a new country of origin data element in the Automated Export System to help the U.S. better collect foreign trade statistics (see 2107010043), the agency said Dec. 14. If the rule is adopted, U.S. exporters of foreign-produced goods would be required to declare the country of origin for their item through a “conditional” data element in AES, Census said. Exporters would need to enter the origin information whenever they select “Foreign origin” in the “Foreign/Domestic Origin Indicator field.” Comments on the proposed change are due Feb. 14.
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Census is considering the change because current U.S. foreign trade statistics don’t provide “sufficient” insight to identify shortcomings and imbalances in domestic supplies of critical goods and other supply chain issues, the agency said. The U.S. is forced to rely on trade partners to share their country of origin data for foreign-produced goods, which “limits U.S. agencies’ ability to identify asymmetry in imports and exports of goods,” Census said. [A]ny asymmetry must be inferred by evaluating the data acquired from foreign trading partners with the data collected on U.S. imports by CBP.”
The new country of origin data element would “eliminate” U.S. reliance on data from trading partners and “increase the accuracy and timeliness of the foreign trade statistics used to monitor trade agreements and policy to assist in assessing U.S. supply chain issues,” the agency said. The information would also help the U.S. “reconcile trade imbalances” and provide “critical insight” to U.S. supply chain issues as the “economy emerges from the pandemic,” Census said.
Census also said many U.S. trade partners already require “detailed” country of origin information on their imports and exports. “In consulting with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and other countries globally,” it said, “the Census Bureau learned that this information is mandatory for their collection.’
The agency said it believes exporters can provide this data in AES after a 12- to 18-month period to “update internal and/or proprietary computer systems,” but is seeking public comments to identify other industry issues or suggestions related to the new data requirement. The proposed rule lists several questions for exporters to consider, including how long it would take for exporters to amend their software to adapt to the changes and any new business practices a company would need to implement to comply with the new requirement. Census also asked how exporters can provide the country of origin information when they “store or warehouse goods of multiple origins together.”