Section 232 Ex Parte Communications

 

BIS is unable to engage in any non-public communications, either oral or written, on the merits of a given Section 232 exclusion request or group or series of exclusion requests. Any non-public communication to Department officials or employees regarding the merits of a given exclusion request or group or series of exclusions requests is considered an ex parte presentation, the contents of which are not considered in the Department’s review of the relevant exclusion request(s). The Department will publicly post a summary of the substance of any oral ex parte presentation and the contents of any written presentation, including written presentations provided in support of an oral communication or meeting.  Below find the collected ex parte presentations published by the Department in accordance with this policy.


For further information, please see the 232 Exclusion Page, the 232 Steel Investigations Page, and the 232 Aluminum Investigations Page.

Company/Individual

Date

Memo
Rustavi Steel July 21, 2021 Link
Aluminum Association August 27, 2020 Link
NARTSCO Inc. September 1, 2020 Link

Kinder Morgan

November 21, 2019

Link

Tata Steel

November 22, 2019

Link

Central National Gottesman

January 24, 2020

Link

Emirates Global Aluminum

January 28, 2020

Link

Allegheny Technologies Incorporated

February 17, 2020

Link

SUSPA Inc

May 7, 2020

Link
Rep. Amodei May 29, 2020 Link
Maple Leaf Marketing July 27, 2020 Link
Goodman Manufacturing September 3, 2020 Link

 

Central National Gottesman Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4

 

 

Frequently Asked Questions

 

Section 232 Steel and Aluminium Exclusions

 

Section 232 Frequently Asked Questions PDF

 

Last Updated 06/19/2019

 

 

 

Section 232 National Security Investigation of Steel Imports

Information on the Exclusion Process

Background

On March 8, 2018, President Trump exercised his authority under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 to impose a 25 percent tariff on steel imports, with exemptions for Canada and Mexico, to protect our national security.  The President’s Section 232 decision is the result of an investigation led by the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC).  U.S. Customs and Border Protection began collecting the tariffs on March 23, 2018.

In President Trump’s proclamation establishing the tariff under Section 232, the President authorized the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with other appropriate federal agency heads, to provide relief from the additional duties for any steel articles determined "not to be produced in the United States in a sufficient and reasonably available amount or of a satisfactory quality and is also authorized to provide such relief based upon specific national security considerations.  Such relief shall be provided for any article only after a request for exclusion is made by a directly affected party located in the United States.”

Process

The DOC reviews each request for conformance with the submission requirements. Those requirements are set forth in:

Once a request is submitted, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reviews the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) code cited in the submission for accuracy. If CBP determines the code is inaccurate, the request is rejected upon initial submission and the requester is provided CBP contact information and reason for rejection.

If CBP determines the HTSUS code is accurate, BIS conducts preliminary screening of the exclusion requests, if rejected the submitter is notified for the reason(s), if approved it is posted for a 30-day public comment period. If there are no objections filed against a request, and if there are no national security concerns, the request is approved.

If objections are submitted, the DOC reviews each objection for conformance with the submission requirements. If an objection is posted, the DOC will re-open the exclusion request for a rebuttal period of 7 calendar days. If a rebuttal is submitted, the DOC reviews each rebuttal for conformance with the submission requirements. If a rebuttal is posted, the DOC will re-open the exclusion request for a sur-rebuttal period of 7 calendar days.

The DOC reviews the exclusion request and the objection(s), rebuttal(s), and sur-rebuttal(s) to the request and determines whether the item is produced in the United States in a sufficient and reasonably available amount; satisfactory quality; or if there is a specific national security consideration warranting an exclusion.

The U.S. Department of Commerce published detailed procedures to request exclusion from the steel and aluminum tariffs in the Federal Register:

Filing Exclusion requests

Only individuals or organizations using steel articles identified in Presidential Proclamations 9704 and 9705 and engaged in business activities in the United States may submit exclusion requests. Exclusion requests submitted on regulations.gov prior to June 13th, 2019 will be posted for a 30-day comment period on regulations.gov. Exclusion requests after June 13th, 2019 must be submitted on the new 232 Exclusions Portal.

For an exclusion requests to be considered, the exclusion requester must provide factual information on:

1) The single type of steel product they require using a 10-digit HTSUS code, including its specific dimension;

2) The quantity of product required (stated in kilograms) under a one-year exclusion;

3) A full description of the properties of the steel product it seeks to import, including chemical composition, dimensions, strength, toughness, ductility, magnetic permeability, surface finish, coatings, and other relevant data.

All exclusion requests will be reviewed for completeness. Only fully completed exclusion requests will be considered and posted for public review. All exclusion requests will be made available for public inspection. 

On June 10, 2019, the U.S. Department of Commerce published, “Implementation of New Commerce Section 232 Exclusions Portal” in the Federal Register Vol. 84, No. 111, 2019-12254. After June 13th, 2019 companies submitting new exclusions will be directed to submit at the 232 Exclusions Portal. Please refer to the 232 Exclusions Portal external user guide for detailed information on how to file exclusion requests on the 232 Exclusions Portal.

Follow the instructions below to register and file an exclusions request. A more detailed user-guide is available at www.commerce.gov/232 website.

  1. ) Go to https://www.commerce.gov/232 and select 232 Exclusions Portal
  2. ) Create an account on the new Portal Site.
  3. ) Once you have created an account, click the button that says: ‘Create New Exclusion Request’.
  4. ) Complete the online form with production information, organization information, importer of record, organization representative contact information, organization activity, product information, commercial names and source countries, and certification.
  5. ) Click “Submit Form”
  6. ) You will be able to view your request on your dashboard or home screen.

Filing Exclusion Objections, Rebuttals & Sur-rebuttals

If your organization manufactures steel products in the United States and wishes to object to an existing exclusion request, you have 30 days from the posting of an exclusion request to submit an objection. Any individual or organization in the United States may file an objection to an exclusion request. 

For an objection filing to be considered, organizations must provide factual information on:

1) The steel products that they manufacture in the United States,

2) The production capabilities at steel manufacturing facilities that they operate in the United States; and

3) The availability and delivery time of the products that they manufacture relative to the specific steel product that is subject to an exclusion request. 

If objections are submitted during the 30-day comment period, the DOC reviews each objection for conformance with the submission requirements. If the objection meets the requirements, it will be posted. Once an objection is posted, the DOC will re-open the exclusion request for a rebuttal period of 7 calendar days.

During these 7 days, the party requesting an exclusion will have the opportunity to submit the rebuttal form in response to the objection. If a rebuttal is submitted, the DOC also reviews each rebuttal for conformance with the submission requirements and posts rebuttals meeting the requirements.

If a rebuttal is posted, the DOC will re-open the exclusion request for a sur-rebuttal period of 7 calendar days. During these 7 days, the objecting party will be able to submit the sur-rebuttal form in response to the rebuttal.

If the requesting or objecting parties have confidential or proprietary business information (CBI) in their rebuttal or sur-rebuttal, they must provide a summary for a public submission, comply with the other requirements in paragraph (b)(5)(iii) of the relevant supplement to 15 CFR part 705, and send the CBI to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., respectively.

If the exclusion request was submitted on regulations.gov then you need to submit the objection on regulations.gov.

For objections submitted and posted on regulations.gov please follow the below steps:

For objections and sur-rebuttals submitted after June 13th, 2019, on the 232 Exclusions Portal, please refer to the 232 Exclusions Portal external user guide for filing objections and sur-rebuttals. Summary steps for posting an objection:

  • To begin creating the objection request, search for the exclusion request using the search box and entering the EXCLUSION REQUEST ID – or sorting by criteria, or manually searching for the exclusion request.
  • Organizations submitting an objection filing on an exclusion request should provide specific information on the product that their company can provide that is comparable to the steel product that is the subject of the exclusion request.
  • This objection request must be signed by an organization official specifically authorized to certify the document as being accurate and complete.
  • To upload supporting documents to the objection request, it must be in the form of a PDF. Once an objection is posted, the U.S. Department of Commerce will re-open the exclusion request for a rebuttal period of 7 calendar days.
  • If a rebuttal is posted, the U.S. Department of Commerce will re-open the exclusion request for a sur-rebuttal period of 7 calendar days. During these 7 days, the objecting party will be able to submit the sur-rebuttal form in response to the rebuttal.

Section 232 Ex Parte Communications

Ex Parte Communications

Section 232 Tariff Rate Quotas

 Note: Effective May 1, 2023, the Department of Commerce has directed U.S. Customs and Border Protection to modify its administration of the European Union Aluminum Tariff-Rate Quota, Japan Steel Tariff-Rate Quota, and the United Kingdom Steel and Aluminum Tariff-Rate Quotas. Presidential Proclamations 10327, 10356, 10405, and 10406 state that articles imported under a granted Section 232 Exclusion shall count against the in-quota volume of these Tariff-Rate Quotas. Commerce interprets the use of “in-quota volume” in these Proclamations to mean that granted Section 232 Exclusions should be applied against the quarterly or biannual limits of each Tariff-Rate Quota, rather than the annual limits of each Tariff-Rate Quota.
 
Note: The Department of Commerce has issued adjusted limits for certain Quota Categories under the European Union, Japan, and United Kingdom Steel Tariff-Rate Quotas (TRQs) specific to Quarter 4 of Calendar Year 2023. These adjustments raise or lower the limits for certain specified Quota Categories but preserve the overall Quarterly and Annual Quota Limits for these TRQs. The adjusted Quota Limits are detailed in the linked documents below.
 
Section 232 EU Agreement Supporting Documents

*BIS has updated the below annual quota volumes for the EU Tariff-Rate Quota with the levels effective starting January 1, 2024. Please note that all official volumes will be in published in U.S. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) Quota Bulletins at https://www.cbp.gov/trade/quota/bulletins. Quota utilization will be published in CBP's Commodity Status Reports at https://www.cbp.gov/trade/quota/tariff-rate-quotas.

Presidential Proclamation 10328 of December 27, 2021 

 

Steel Extended Exclusions List - Calendar Year 2022

Steel Extended Exclusions List - Calendar Year 2023

Steel Extended Exclusions List - Calendar Year 2024

Steel TRQ by Country Listing 

Steel Annual TRQ HTS Classifications 

Steel TRQ by Category Listing 

 

Section 232 Japan Agreement Supporting Documents 
 
 
 
Section 232 United Kingdom Agreement Supporting Documents 

 

Section 232 Ukraine Proclamation
 

U.S. Steel Import Monitoring

U.S. Steel Import Monitor

Commerce Biannual Report - Exclusion Requests by Category - January to July 2020 

 

Commerce Biannual Report - Exclusion Requests by Category - July to December 2020

 

Commerce Biannual Report - Exclusion Requests by Category - January to July 2021 

 

Commerce Biannual Report - Exclusion Requests by Category - July to December 2021


Contact

 

  • For questions concerning the exclusion process, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 202-482-5642 for steel-related queries. (Contact Hours: M-F, 8:30am-5:00pm EST)
  • If you have issues uploading the forms on 232 exclusion portal, please contact Portal Support Help Desk at 1-202-482-3203 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. (Contact Hours: M-F, 8:30am-5:00pm EST)
  • If you have issues uploading the forms on regulations.gov, please contact the www.regulations.gov Help Desk at 1-877-378-5457 (toll free) or 703-454-9859.

 

Last Updated: 12-20-2023,3:00pm

 

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), Office of Technology Evaluation (OTE), is conducting a survey of the automobile and/or automotive parts industries. The survey, requested by the Office of the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce, will be used to support an investigation initiated under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, as amended. 

 

The principal goal of this survey is to assist the Commerce Department in determining whether automobiles and/or automotive parts are being imported into the United States in such quantities or under such circumstances as to threaten to impair the national security. Information collected will include facilities and production data, joint ventures, trade flows, supply chain data, sales and demand data, employment information, conditions of competition, research and development information, and government and defense activities. The resulting aggregate data will give the Commerce Department detailed industry information that is otherwise not publicly available and needed to effectively conduct its analysis.

 

Your organization has been identified as manufacturing automobiles and/or automotive parts at one or more facilities in the United States. Your participation in this survey is vital to ensure a comprehensive dataset for the assessment. BIS has worked in successful partnership with other U.S. industry sectors and we anticipate similar cooperation from your organization on this effort.

 

To begin, download the Microsoft Excel-formatted survey and corresponding instructions by clicking on the hyperlinked documents below.

 

Autos 232 Survey (Excel)*† │ Autos 232 Survey (PDF)†

 

Armored Vehicles 232 Survey (Excel)*† │  Armored Vehicles 232 Survey (PDF)†

 

Complete and submit the Excel version via email to BIS at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . BIS will only accept Excel-formatted survey submissions. The PDF version is only a reference document for your organization's internal use and cannot be submitted in place of a completed Excel survey.

 

*Note 1: Save a copy of the Excel survey to your computer before you make any inputs to the questionnaire.

 

†Note 2: If, when clicking on the above links, your computer does not ask if you want to download the file to your computer, right click on the link and select "Save As."

 

If you have any questions regarding the survey, please contact the BIS survey support staff by e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. , or phone (202) 482-4358. E-mail is the preferred method of contact and will allow for a detailed response by BIS.

 

All information submitted to BIS is protected as Business Confidential under provisions of the Defense Production Act (DPA) of 1950, as amended, and will not be published or disclosed, other than in aggregate form. At no time will such reporting identify your specific organization. Such information is also protected from disclosure from Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.  Also note that your company is required by federal law (50 U.S.C. § 4555) to complete the survey.

 

Section 232 National Security Investigation: Imports of Automobiles and Automotive Parts Survey

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), Office of Technology Evaluation (OTE), is conducting a survey of the automobile and/or automotive parts industries. The survey, requested by the Office of the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce, will be used to support an investigation initiated under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, as amended.

The principal goal of this survey is to assist the Commerce Department in determining whether automobiles and/or automotive parts are being imported into the United States in such quantities or under such circumstances as to threaten to impair the national security. Information collected will include facilities and production data, joint ventures, trade flows, supply chain data, sales and demand data, employment information, conditions of competition, research and development information, and government and defense activities. The resulting aggregate data will give the Commerce Department detailed industry information that is otherwise not publicly available and needed to effectively conduct its analysis.

Your organization has been identified as manufacturing automobiles and/or automotive parts at one or more facilities in the United States. Your participation in this survey is vital to ensure a comprehensive dataset for the assessment. BIS has worked in successful partnership with other U.S. industry sectors and we anticipate similar cooperation from your organization on this effort.

To begin, download the Microsoft Excel-formatted survey and corresponding instructions by clicking on the hyperlinked documents below.                                                                                                          

Autos 232 Survey (Excel)*† │ Autos 232 Survey (PDF)†

Complete and submit the Excel version via email to BIS at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. BIS will only accept Excel-formatted survey submissions. The PDF version is only a reference document for your organization's internal use and cannot be submitted in place of a completed Excel survey.

*Note 1: Save a copy of the Excel survey to your computer before you make any inputs to the questionnaire.

†Note 2: If, when clicking on the above links, your computer does not ask if you want to download the file to your computer, right click on the link and select "Save As."

If you have any questions regarding the survey, please contact the BIS survey support staff by e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or phone (202) 482-4358. E-mail is the preferred method of contact and will allow for a detailed response by BIS.

All information submitted to BIS is protected as Business Confidential under provisions of the Defense Production Act (DPA) of 1950, as amended, and will not be published or disclosed, other than in aggregate form. At no time will such reporting identify your specific organization. Such information is also protected from disclosure from Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. Also note that your company is required by federal law (50 U.S.C. § 2155) to complete the survey within 30 days.

                                                                       

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE

 


Section 232 National Security Investigation of Aluminum Imports

Information on the Exclusion Process

Background

On March 8, 2018, President Trump exercised his authority under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 to impose a 10 percent tariff on aluminum imports, with exemptions for Canada and Mexico, to protect our national security.  The President’s Section 232 decision is the result of an investigation led by the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC).  U.S. Customs and Border Protection began collecting the tariffs on March 23, 2018.

In President Trump’s proclamation establishing the tariff under Section 232, the President authorized the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with other appropriate federal agency heads, to provide relief from the additional duties for any aluminum articles determined "not to be produced in the United States in a sufficient and reasonably available amount or of a satisfactory quality and is also authorized to provide such relief based upon specific national security considerations.  Such relief shall be provided for any article only after a request for exclusion is made by a directly affected party located in the United States.”

Process

The DOC reviews each request for conformance with the submission requirements. Those requirements are set forth in:

Once a request is submitted, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reviews the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) code cited in the submission for accuracy.  If CBP determines the code is inaccurate, the request is rejected upon initial submission and the requester is provided CBP contact information and reason for rejection.

If CBP determines the HTSUS code is accurate, BIS conducts preliminary screening of the exclusion requests, if rejected, the submitter is notified for the reason(s), if approved, it is posted for a 30-day public comment period. If there are no objections filed against a request, and if there are no national security concerns, the request is approved.

If objections are submitted, the DOC reviews each objection for conformance with the submission requirements. If an objection is posted, the DOC will re-open the exclusion request for a rebuttal period of 7 calendar days. If a rebuttal is submitted, the DOC reviews each rebuttal for conformance with the submission requirements. If a rebuttal is posted, the DOC will re-open the exclusion request for a sur-rebuttal period of 7 calendar days.

The DOC reviews the exclusion request and the objection(s), rebuttal(s), and sur-rebuttal(s) to the request and determines whether the item is produced in the United States in a sufficient and reasonably available amount; satisfactory quality; or if there is a specific national security consideration warranting an exclusion.

The U.S. Department of Commerce published detailed procedures to request exclusion from the steel and aluminum tariffs in the Federal Register:

Filing Exclusion requests

Only individuals or organizations using aluminum articles identified in Presidential Proclamations 9704 and 9705 and engaged in business activities in the United States may submit exclusion requests. Exclusion requests submitted on regulations.gov prior to June 13th, 2019 will be posted for a 30-day comment period on regulations.gov.  Exclusion requests on or after June 13th, 2019 must be submitted on the new 232 Exclusions Portal.

For an exclusion requests to be considered, the exclusion requester must provide accurate information on:

1)    The single type of aluminum product they require using a 10-digit HTSUS code, including its specific dimension;

2)    The quantity of product required (stated in kilograms) under a one-year exclusion;

3)    A full description of the properties of the aluminum product it seeks to import, including chemical composition, dimensions, strength, toughness, ductility, magnetic permeability, surface finish, coatings, and other relevant data.

All exclusion requests will be reviewed for completeness. Only fully completed exclusion requests will be considered and posted for public review. All exclusion requests will be made available for public inspection. 

On June 10, 2019, the U.S. Department of Commerce published, “Implementation of New Commerce Section 232 Exclusions Portal” in the Federal Register Vol. 84, No. 111, 2019-12254. After June 13th, 2019, companies submitting new exclusions will be directed to submit at the 232 Exclusions Portal. For detailed information on how to file exclusion requests, please refer to the 232 Exclusions Portal.

Follow the instructions below to register and file an exclusions request. A more detailed user-guide is available at www.commerce.gov/232 website.

1)            Go to https://www.commerce.gov/232 and select 232 Exclusions Portal

2)            Create an account on the new Portal Site.

3)            Once you have created an account, click the button that says: ‘Create New Exclusion Request’.

4)            Complete the online form with production information, organization information, importer of record, organization representative contact
    information, organization activity, product information, commercial names and source countries, and certification.

5)            Click “Submit Form”

6)            You will be able to view your request on your dashboard or home screen.

Filing Exclusion Objections, Rebuttals & Sur-rebuttals

If your organization manufactures aluminum products in the United States and wishes to object to an existing exclusion request, you have 30 days from the posting of an exclusion request to submit an objection. Any individual or organization in the United States may file an objection to an exclusion request. 

For an objection filing to be considered, organizations must provide accurate information on:

1)    The aluminum products that they manufacture in the United States,

2)    The production capabilities at aluminum manufacturing facilities that they operate in the United States; and

3)    The availability and delivery time of the products that they manufacture relative to the specific aluminum product that is subject to an exclusion request. 

If objections are submitted during the 30-day comment period, the DOC reviews each objection for conformance with the submission requirements. If the objection meets the requirements, it will be posted. Once an objection is posted, the DOC will re-open the exclusion request for a rebuttal period of 7 calendar days.

During these 7 days, the party requesting an exclusion will have the opportunity to submit the rebuttal form in response to the objection. If a rebuttal is submitted, the U.S. Department of Commerce also reviews each rebuttal for conformance with the submission requirements and posts rebuttals meeting the requirements.

If a rebuttal is posted, the DOC will re-open the exclusion request for a sur-rebuttal period of 7 calendar days. During these 7 days, the objecting party will be able to submit the sur-rebuttal form in response to the rebuttal.

If the requesting or objecting parties have confidential or proprietary business information (CBI) in their rebuttal or sur-rebuttal, they must provide a summary for a public submission, comply with the other requirements in paragraph (b)(5)(iii) of the relevant supplement to 15 CFR part 705, and send the CBI to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., respectively.

If the exclusion request was submitted on regulations.gov then you need to submit the objection on regulations.gov. 

For objections submitted and posted on regulations.gov please follow the below steps:

For objections and sur-rebuttals submitted after June 13th, 2019, on the 232 Exclusions Portal, please refer to the 232 Exclusions Portal external user guide for filing objections and sur-rebuttals Summary steps for posting an objection:

  • To begin creating the objection request, search for the exclusion request using the search box and entering the EXCLUSION REQUEST ID – or sorting by criteria, or manually searching for the exclusion request.
  • Organizations submitting an objection filing on an exclusion request should provide specific information on the product that their company can provide that is comparable to the aluminum product that is the subject of the exclusion request.
  • This objection request must be signed by an organization official specifically authorized to certify the document as being accurate and complete.
  • To upload supporting documents to the objection request, it must be in the form of a PDF. Once an objection is posted, the U.S. Department of Commerce will re-open the exclusion request for a rebuttal period of 7 calendar days.
  • If a rebuttal is posted, the U.S. Department of Commerce will re-open the exclusion request for a sur-rebuttal period of 7 calendar days. During these 7 days, the objecting party will be able to submit the sur-rebuttal form in response to the rebuttal.

 

Section 232 Ex Parte Communications

Ex Parte Communications

Section 232 Tariff Rate Quotas

Note: Effective May 1, 2023, the Department of Commerce has directed U.S. Customs and Border Protection to modify its administration of the European Union Aluminum Tariff-Rate Quota, Japan Steel Tariff-Rate Quota, and the United Kingdom Steel and Aluminum Tariff-Rate Quotas. Presidential Proclamations 10327, 10356, 10405, and 10406 state that articles imported under a granted Section 232 Exclusion shall count against the in-quota volume of these Tariff-Rate Quotas. Commerce interprets the use of “in-quota volume” in these Proclamations to mean that granted Section 232 Exclusions should be applied against the quarterly or biannual limits of each Tariff-Rate Quota, rather than the annual limits of each Tariff-Rate Quota.


Section 232 EU Agreement Supporting Documents

*BIS has updated the below annual quota volumes for the EU Tariff-Rate Quota with the levels effective starting January 1, 2024. Please note that all official volumes will be in published in U.S. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) Quota Bulletins at https://www.cbp.gov/trade/quota/bulletins. Quota utilization will be published in CBP's Commodity Status Reports at https://www.cbp.gov/trade/quota/tariff-rate-quotas.

Presidential Proclamation 10327 of December 27, 2021

Aluminum TRQ by Category Listing  

Aluminum TRQ by Country Listing 

Aluminum TRQ HTS Classifications

Section 232 United Kingdom Agreement Supporting Documents

UK Aluminum TRQ by Category Listing 


Annex to Proclamation on Adjusting Imports of Aluminum Into the United States

Annex to Proclamation on Adjusting Imports of Aluminum Into the United States

U.S. Aluminum Import Monitoring

U.S. Aluminum Import Monitor

Commerce Biannual Report - Exclusion Requests by Category - January to July 2020 

 

Commerce Biannual Report - Exclusion Requests by Category - July to December 2020

 

Commerce Biannual Report - Exclusion Requests by Category - January to July 2021 

 

Commerce Biannual Report - Exclusion Requests by Category - July to December 2021 

 

Contact

  • For questions concerning the exclusion process contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.or 202-482-4757 for aluminum-related queries. (Contact Hours: M-F, 8:30am-5:00pm EST)   
  • If you have issues uploading the forms on 232 Exclusions Portal, please contact Portal Support Help Desk at 1-202-482-3203 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . (Contact Hours: M-F, 8:30am-5:00pm EST) 
  • If you have issues uploading the forms on regulations.gov, please contact the www.regulations.gov Help Desk at 1-877-378-5457 (toll free) or 703-454-9859.

 

 

Last Updated: 12-20-2023, 06:00pm

Background

On March 8, 2018, President Trump exercised his authority under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 to impose a 10 percent tariff on aluminum imports, with exemptions for Canada and Mexico, to protect our national security.  The President’s Section 232 decision is the result of an investigation led by the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC).  U.S. Customs and Border Protection began collecting the tariffs on March 23, 2018.

In President Trump’s proclamation establishing the tariff under Section 232, the President authorized the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with other appropriate federal agency heads, to provide relief from the additional duties for any aluminum articles determined "not to be produced in the United States in a sufficient and reasonably available amount or of a satisfactory quality and is also authorized to provide such relief based upon specific national security considerations.  Such relief shall be provided for any article only after a request for exclusion is made by a directly affected party located in the United States.”

Process

The DOC reviews each request for conformance with the submission requirements. Those requirements are set forth in:

Once a request is submitted, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reviews the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) code cited in the submission for accuracy.  If CBP determines the code is inaccurate, the request is rejected upon initial submission and the requester is provided CBP contact information and reason for rejection.

If CBP determines the HTSUS code is accurate, BIS conducts preliminary screening of the exclusion requests, if rejected, the submitter is notified for the reason(s), if approved, it is posted for a 30-day public comment period. If there are no objections filed against a request, and if there are no national security concerns, the request is approved.

If objections are submitted, the DOC reviews each objection for conformance with the submission requirements. If an objection is posted, the DOC will re-open the exclusion request for a rebuttal period of 7 calendar days. If a rebuttal is submitted, the DOC reviews each rebuttal for conformance with the submission requirements. If a rebuttal is posted, the DOC will re-open the exclusion request for a sur-rebuttal period of 7 calendar days.

The DOC reviews the exclusion request and the objection(s), rebuttal(s), and sur-rebuttal(s) to the request and determines whether the item is produced in the United States in a sufficient and reasonably available amount; satisfactory quality; or if there is a specific national security consideration warranting an exclusion.

The U.S. Department of Commerce published detailed procedures to request exclusion from the steel and aluminum tariffs in the Federal Register:

Filing Exclusion requests

Only individuals or organizations using aluminum articles identified in Presidential Proclamations 9704 and 9705 and engaged in business activities in the United States may submit exclusion requests. Exclusion requests submitted on regulations.gov prior to June 13th, 2019 will be posted for a 30-day comment period on regulations.gov.  Exclusion requests on or after June 13th, 2019 must be submitted on the new 232 Exclusions Portal.

For an exclusion requests to be considered, the exclusion requester must provide accurate information on:

1)    The single type of aluminum product they require using a 10-digit HTSUS code, including its specific dimension;

2)    The quantity of product required (stated in kilograms) under a one-year exclusion;

3)    A full description of the properties of the aluminum product it seeks to import, including chemical composition, dimensions, strength, toughness, ductility, magnetic permeability, surface finish, coatings, and other relevant data.

All exclusion requests will be reviewed for completeness. Only fully completed exclusion requests will be considered and posted for public review. All exclusion requests will be made available for public inspection. 

On June 10, 2019, the U.S. Department of Commerce published, “Implementation of New Commerce Section 232 Exclusions Portal” in the Federal Register Vol. 84, No. 111, 2019-12254. After June 13th, 2019, companies submitting new exclusions will be directed to submit at the 232 Exclusions Portal. For detailed information on how to file exclusion requests, please refer to the 232 Exclusions Portal.

Follow the instructions below to register and file an exclusions request. A more detailed user-guide is available at www.commerce.gov/232 website.

1)            Go to https://www.commerce.gov/232 and select 232 Exclusions Portal

2)            Create an account on the new Portal Site.

3)            Once you have created an account, click the button that says: ‘Create New Exclusion Request’.

4)            Complete the online form with production information, organization information, importer of record, organization representative contact information, organization activity, product information, commercial names and source countries, and certification.

5)            Click “Submit Form”

6)            You will be able to view your request on your dashboard or home screen.

Filing Exclusion Objections, Rebuttals & Sur-rebuttals

If your organization manufactures aluminum products in the United States and wishes to object to an existing exclusion request, you have 30 days from the posting of an exclusion request to submit an objection. Any individual or organization in the United States may file an objection to an exclusion request. 

For an objection filing to be considered, organizations must provide accurate information on:

1)    The aluminum products that they manufacture in the United States,

2)    The production capabilities at aluminum manufacturing facilities that they operate in the United States; and

3)    The availability and delivery time of the products that they manufacture relative to the specific aluminum product that is subject to an exclusion request. 

If objections are submitted during the 30-day comment period, the DOC reviews each objection for conformance with the submission requirements. If the objection meets the requirements, it will be posted. Once an objection is posted, the DOC will re-open the exclusion request for a rebuttal period of 7 calendar days.

During these 7 days, the party requesting an exclusion will have the opportunity to submit the rebuttal form in response to the objection. If a rebuttal is submitted, the U.S. Department of Commerce also reviews each rebuttal for conformance with the submission requirements and posts rebuttals meeting the requirements.

If a rebuttal is posted, the DOC will re-open the exclusion request for a sur-rebuttal period of 7 calendar days. During these 7 days, the objecting party will be able to submit the sur-rebuttal form in response to the rebuttal.

If the requesting or objecting parties have confidential or proprietary business information (CBI) in their rebuttal or sur-rebuttal, they must provide a summary for a public submission, comply with the other requirements in paragraph (b)(5)(iii) of the relevant supplement to 15 CFR part 705, and send the CBI to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., respectively.

If the exclusion request was submitted on regulations.gov then you need to submit the objection on regulations.gov. 

For objections submitted and posted on regulations.gov please follow the below steps:

For objections and sur-rebuttals submitted after June 13th, 2019, on the 232 Exclusions Portal, please refer to the 232 Exclusions Portal external user guide for filing objections and sur-rebuttals Summary steps for posting an objection:

  • To begin creating the objection request, search for the exclusion request using the search box and entering the EXCLUSION REQUEST ID – or sorting by criteria, or manually searching for the exclusion request.
  • Organizations submitting an objection filing on an exclusion request should provide specific information on the product that their company can provide that is comparable to the aluminum product that is the subject of the exclusion request.
  • This objection request must be signed by an organization official specifically authorized to certify the document as being accurate and complete.
  • To upload supporting documents to the objection request, it must be in the form of a PDF. Once an objection is posted, the U.S. Department of Commerce will re-open the exclusion request for a rebuttal period of 7 calendar days.
  • If a rebuttal is posted, the U.S. Department of Commerce will re-open the exclusion request for a sur-rebuttal period of 7 calendar days. During these 7 days, the objecting party will be able to submit the sur-rebuttal form in response to the rebuttal.

 Contact

  • For questions concerning the exclusion process contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.or 202-482-4757 for aluminum-related queries. (Contact Hours: M-F, 8:30am-5:00pm EST)   
  • If you have issues uploading the forms on 232 Exclusions Portal, please contact Portal Support Help Desk at 1-202-482-3203 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . (Contact Hours: M-F, 8:30am-5:00pm EST) 
  • If you have issues uploading the forms on regulations.gov, please contact the www.regulations.gov Help Desk at 1-877-378-5457 (toll free) or 703-454-9859.

 


Last Updated: 12-20-2019, 4:00pm
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