General Inquiries
• USTR’s website has various product- and industry-specific factsheets and Q&As about the Agreement and we have set up a website and an email address for your inquiries: http://www.ustr.gov/uskoreaFTA and KORUS@ustr.eop.gov.
• For information about customs procedures on how to import from Korea, CBP has set up a website and an email address: http://www.cbp.gov/trade/free-trade-agreements/korea and fta@dhs.gov.
• For information about customs procedures on how to export to Korea, the Korean government has also set up a website and an email address, http://www.USKoreaConnect.org and info@USKoreaConnect.org.
Classification of Your Products (for Imports into the United States)
• In general, the FTA does not affect classification of your product under the U.S. Harmonized Tariff Schedule. The FTA relies on the existing system of product classification.
• For producers new to importing and product classification, CBP has resources to assist. In particular, CBP’s informed compliance publication website has guidelines for classifying different products and other useful information. http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/trade/legal/informed_compliance_pubs/
• CBP also offers a database of their past rulings on classification and other matters online. Customs Rulings Online Search System (CROSS) can be found at http://rulings.cbp.gov/.
• You can also request an advance ruling for HTS classification and other matters related to your products for import. http://www.cbp.gov/trade/rulings
• The Commerce Department’s export.gov website also has detailed information on product classification and related matters. http://export.gov/faq/eg_main_017509.asp
Finding Out Whether Your Product Qualifies for Preferential Tariff Treatment
• Once you have a Harmonized Tariff Schedule product classification code, you can use our “Tariff Tool” to figure out the new, preferential tariff rate under the FTA for your exports and imports. The Tariff Tool can be found at: http://export.gov/fta/ftatarifftool/TariffSearch.aspx.
• Another way of looking up the tariff rates under the FTA is by looking at the final text of the agreement. On USTR’s website, under the “final text” section, two tariff schedules, one for products going to Korea and one for products coming to the U.S. can be found. http://www.ustr.gov/trade-agreements/free-trade-agreements/korus-fta/final-text
• U.S. International Trade Commission has also prepared a publication listing preferential tariff rates for products coming into the U.S. from Korea. ITC Publication No. 4308 (http://www.usitc.gov/publications/tariff_affairs/USITCPub4308.pdf) lists the Harmonized Tariff Codes and their corresponding tariff rates under the FTA.
• For products going to Korea, the Korean Customs Service has also set up a page that shows tariff rates for U.S. goods exports to Korea. The Koreans Customs Service’s website is http://fta.customs.go.kr/ (in Korean). The Korean Embassy’s website http://www.USKoreaConnect.org also provides information on exporting to Korea.
Certifying Origin
• The FTA uses a “knowledge-based” system for certifying origin. This means that an exporter, producer, or importer can provide a certification that a good is originating under the FTA to support an importer’s claim of preferential tariff treatment. A claim may also be based on an importer’s own knowledge that the good is originating.
• If a certification is used, there is no prescribed form or format for completing the certification and can be written or electronic. The certification should contain certain elements (listed under Article 6.15 of the FTA) but you should check with the importer or importing country’s customs authority for all the necessary elements to complete a certification.
• If an exporter or producer provides a certification that the good is originating, they must keep all records necessary that demonstrate that the good was originating for a minimum of five years from the date the certification was issued.
• For more information about customs procedures on how to export to Korea, the Korean government has also set up a website and an email address, http://www.USKoreaConnect.org and info@USKoreaConnect.org.
