The Agreement between Mexico, the United States and Canada (USMCA, or Treaty) entered into force on July 1, 2020 and the following are 23 frequently asked questions about that trade agreement, according to the Tax Administration Service.
- The USMCA establishes that the certification of origin can be signed electronically or digitally, does this mean that it cannot be signed autographically?
Answer: No, the certificate of origin can be issued with a handwritten signature; however, it is also possible to issue it with an electronic or digital signature.
- What would be the electronic or digital signature that will be used to sign the certification of origin?
Answer: That which is issued in accordance with the legislation that corresponds to the place where the certifier is located.
- In the USMCA, when the certification of origin is illegible, defective in its pages, or has not been completed in accordance with the Treaty, what period of time will be had to correct it?
Answer: The importer will be granted a period of 5 days from the day following the notification of the requirement to present a corrected copy of the certificate of origin to the customs authority in which the irregularities detected are corrected.
USMCA and foreign trade
- When will the certification of origin be implemented by the importer?
Response: The USMCA establishes that Mexico will implement the certification by the importer no later than 3 years and 6 months after its entry into force, for which Mexico will announce when it implements it, through the corresponding legal order within that period.
- What are the requirements that I must meet to submit a request for early resolution to the SAT?
Answer: The requirements are set out in rule 1.2.10. of the General Rules of Foreign Trade in force and format E12 of Annex 1 of said rules.
- If my certification of origin contains more elements than those requested in the USMCA, will it be rejected for that reason alone?
Answer: No, in accordance with the provisions of rule 26 of the Resolution that establishes the General Rules relating to the application of the provisions on customs matters of the Treaty and its annexes, the certification of origin will not be rejected because it contains additional data. those indicated in Annex 1 of said Resolution.
Refund of duties
- In the event that at the time of an import made from July 1, 2020, I have not requested preferential tariff treatment under the USMCA, can I request it later?
Answer: Yes, it is possible to request preferential tariff treatment and the refund of tariffs paid in excess, no later than one year after the date of importation, provided that the merchandise had qualified for said treatment under the Agreement when it was imported into national territory. and compliance with the requirements set forth in rule 72 of the Resolution that establishes the General Rules relating to the application of the provisions on customs matters of the Treaty and its annexes.
- The certification of origin according to the USMCA can be issued in commercial documents. Is there an illustrative and non-limiting list of those documents? Do business documents have to be issued in a Party Country?
Answer: The certification of origin can be issued on an invoice or face of the invoice, on the transport documents or any other document (for example, packing list, sales note, blank sheet or separate document); However, in the case of commercial documents issued in a country other than Canada, the United States or Mexico, the certification of origin may not be established on said commercial documents or on an invoice issued in a country other than those mentioned.
Importer
- The domicile of the producer that must be declared in a certification of origin, will it be the fiscal domicile or the domicile of the production plant?
Answer: The address (including the country) that corresponds to the place of production of the merchandise in the territory of Mexico, United States or Canada must be declared.
- Who is responsible for a certification that indicates compliance with the Rules of Origin?
Answer: Whoever issues the certification will be responsible, which may be the importer, the exporter or the producer. However, it is specified that the importer is responsible to the customs authority for paying the omitted contributions, as he is the one who requested the preferential tariff treatment.
- Will the origin review procedures under NAFTA be without effect?
Answer: No, such origin verification procedures will continue and be resolved under NAFTA. In addition, merchandise that would have received preferential tariff treatment during the term of NAFTA may be subject to these verification procedures up to 5 years after the date on which the merchandise was imported.
- In which cases must the identifier «TA» be declared in the motion?
Answer: When the importer requests preferential tariff treatment based on a request filed with the Ministry of Economy that is pending resolution or, on a favorable resolution from that authority to use an alternative transition regime.
Motions
- Can the tariff preference be applied using the NAFTA Certificate of Origin in virtual transfers with consolidated pedimentos opened before July 1, 2020, whose closing is after that date?
Answer: No, as of July 1, 2020, requests for preferential tariff treatment for merchandise originating in North America must be made in compliance with the applicable provisions of the USMCA and in the Resolution establishing the rules of general nature relating to the application of the provisions on customs matters of the Treaty, as well as its annexes.
- How should a certification of origin be completed for the definitive export of merchandise that was subject to transfers (virtual operations) and who should issue said certification?
Answer: The certification of origin may be filled out electronically, it must contain the information established in Annex 5-A (Minimum Information Elements) of the USMCA and may be signed by the certifier located in any of the countries that are part of the USMCA, either handwritten, electronic or digital, in accordance with the corresponding legislation.
The aforementioned certification of origin may be issued by the producer who carried out the last transformation to the merchandise or the exporter when he is different from the producer, provided that he has the information, including documents, that demonstrate that the merchandise is original or issues the certification with based on a written statement from the producer, as well as on the certification of origin, stating that the merchandise originates from North America under the USMCA.
Exporter
- In the case of virtual operations where the Mexican exporting company declares that the merchandise qualifies as originating to its counterpart in the United States of America, in the certification of origin, who must carry out the certification of origin as an exporter, the Mexican exporter that transfers the merchandise or the American company that originally exported the merchandise to Mexico?
Answer: In these cases, the exporter located in Mexico must issue the certificate of origin.
- What is the criterion of origin that I must write down when the merchandise is produced in Mexico?
Answer: You must indicate the rule of origin under which the merchandise qualifies as originating according to the Treaty.
- Can I rectify a petition processed before June 30, 2020, in order to apply the preferential tariff treatment under NAFTA, using the NAFTA certificate of origin?
Answer: No, as of July 1, 2020, requests for preferential tariff treatment for merchandise originating in the United States of America and Canada must be made in compliance with the applicable provisions of the Agreement and with the Resolution establishing the General rules relating to the application of the provisions on customs matters of the Treaty and its annexes.
Temporary imports
- Can I carry out the regularization of merchandise originating in the United States of America and Canada imported temporarily to Mexico until June 30, 2020 applying preferential tariff treatment according to NAFTA or must I obtain a certification of origin under the USMCA?
Answer: It must be done with a certificate of origin issued in accordance with the USMCA, provided that the goods qualify as originating under said USMCA.
- In the certification of origin, in which cases will it not be required to indicate information under the “Producer” element?
Answer: The element corresponding to the «Producer» must be entered when it is different from the certifier or exporter. If there are multiple producers, “Several” will be indicated; Or, you can provide a list of producers or indicate «Available at the request of the importing authorities», so it will not be necessary to reproduce again the information that has already been indicated for the certifier or exporter, when the producer is one of these.
USMCA and the producer
- In what cases will the information regarding the exporter and importer not be required?
Answer: The element corresponding to «Exporter» can be omitted if the producer issues the certification of origin and does not know the identity of the exporter. The item “Importer” may be omitted when unknown.
- What is the address of the exporter that must be indicated in a certification of origin when it is not the producer?
Answer: The domicile of the exporter will be the place of export of the merchandise in the territory of the United States of America, Canada or Mexico. Likewise, the corporate domicile may be accepted, provided that it is in the territory of any of the aforementioned countries.
- To apply the 17% rate to shipments made through parcel or courier companies, does the merchandise «come» from the United States of America or Canada, or does the merchandise have to qualify as originating in accordance with the USMCA and declare the identifier TL?
Answer: The 17% rate applies to merchandise that comes from the United States of America or Canada, so it is not necessary for the merchandise to qualify as originating and, therefore, it is not required to declare the TL identifier.
Verification of origin
- Which authority (from which country) will carry out the supervision visits for compliance with the Rules of Origin?
Answer: The customs authority of the importing country. In the case of Mexico, the competent customs authority that currently carries out the origin verification procedures is the General Administration of Foreign Trade Audit of the SAT.
