[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 177 (Thursday, September 12, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57795-57796]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-23149]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS


Announcement of Paperless ELVIS (Electronic Visa Information 
System) Requirement and of Elimination of Paper Visa for Textiles and 
Textile Products Produced or Manufactured in the Republic of the 
Philippines

September 6, 2002.
AGENCY: Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA)

ACTION: Issuing a directive to the Commissioner of Customs eliminating 
the paper visa requirement.

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

EFFECTIVE DATE: September 15, 2002.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anna Flaaten, International Trade 
Specialist, Office of Textiles and Apparel, U.S. Department of 
Commerce, (202) 482-3400.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

    Authority: Section 204 of the Agricultural Act of 1956, as 
amended (7 U.S.C. 1854); Executive Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, as 
amended.
    Pursuant to a textile visa arrangement between the Governments of 
the United States and the Republic of the Philippines (Philippines), 
certain textiles and textile products exported from the Philippines 
must be accompanied by a visa issued by the Philippines in order to be 
imported into the United States. See 44 FR 68005 (November 28, 1979). 
The Electronic Visa Information System (ELVIS) allows certain foreign 
governments to electronically transfer textile and textile product 
shipment information to the U.S. Customs Service and thereby issue a 
visa electronically. On August 18, 1997 (62 FR 43993), CITA announced 
that the Philippines would begin an ELVIS test implementation phase 
using both paper and electronic visas. On August 17, 2001, the Chairman 
of CITA requested public comment regarding elimination of the paper 
visa requirement for the Philippines and utilization of the ELVIS 
system exclusively. (66 FR 43227)
    On May 21, 2002, the Governments of the United States and the 
Philippines signed an ELVIS Arrangement. Under this Arrangement, a 
paper visa is no longer required, as an electronic transmission 
certifies the country of origin and authorizes the shipment to be 
charged against any applicable quota.
    In the letter published below, the Chairman of CITA directs the 
Commissioner of Customs to eliminate the paper visa requirement for 
textiles and textile products, produced or manufactured in the 
Philippines and exported on or after September 15, 2002. Each shipment 
of textiles and textile products, as defined in the Arrangement, must 
be accompanied by an ELVIS transmission issued by the Philippines for 
products exported on or after September 15, 2002.
    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.

William J. Dulka,
Acting Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile 
Agreements.

Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements

September 6, 2002.

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 November 21, 1979, 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 the 
Philippines for which the Government of the Republic of the 
Philippines (Philippines) 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), Executive Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, 
as amended, the Uruguay Round Agreement on Textiles and Clothing 
(ATC); and pursuant to the Electronic Visa Information System 
(ELVIS) Arrangement dated May 21, 2002 between the Governments of 
the United States and the Republic of the Philippines, you are 
directed to prohibit, effective on September 15, 2002, 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, man-made fiber, silk blend and other vegetable fiber textiles 
and textile products in Categories 200-239, 300-369, 400-469, 600-
670, and 800-899, including part categories and merged categories, 
and which are not eligible for the exemptions noted below, produced 
or manufactured in the Philippines and exported on or after 
September 15, 2002 for which the Philippines has not transmitted an 
appropriate ELVIS transmission fully described below. Further, you 
are directed, effective on September 15, 2002, no longer to require 
a paper visa for the entry of shipments of textiles and textile 
products, produced or manufactured in the Philippines and exported 
to the United States on or after September 15, 2002.
    A. Each ELVIS transmission must include the following 
information:
    i. The visa number. The visa number must be in the standard nine 
digit letter format, beginning with one numeric 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 the Republic of the Philippines 
is ``PH''), and a six digit numerical serial number identifying the 
shipment; e.g., 1PH123456.
    ii. The date of issuance. The date of issuance must be the day, 
month and year on which the visa was issued.
    iii. The correct category(s), part category(s), merged 
category(s), quantity(s) and unit(s) of quantity are provided for in 
the U.S. Department of Commerce correlation and in the Harmonized 
Tariff Schedules of the United States (HTS), e.g., ``Cat. 340-
510DZ''. Annex A lists all the part-category and merged category 
visas required for entry. Products covered by merged category quotas 
must be accompanied by either a merged category transmission or the 
correct category corresponding to the actual shipment, (e.g., quota 
category 333/334 may be transmitted in ``category 333/334'' or if 
the shipment consists solely of category 333 merchandise, the 
shipment may be accompanied by a transmission in ``category 333'' 
but not as ``category 334.''). Quantities must be stated in whole 
numbers. Decimals or fractions will not be accepted.
    iv. The manufacturer identification number (MID). The MID must 
begin with `PH,' 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 the first three letters from the city name where the 
manufacturer is located.
    B. Entry of a shipment shall not be permitted:
    i. if an ELVIS transmission has not been received for the 
shipment from the Philippines;
    ii. if the ELVIS transmission for that shipment is missing any 
of the following:
    a. visa number
    b. category, part category or merged category,
    c. quantity,
    d. unit of measure,
    e. date of issuance, or
    f. MID;

[[Page 57796]]

    iii. if the ELVIS transmission for the shipment does not match 
the information supplied by the importer or by its representatives 
regarding:
    a. visa number
    b. category, part category, or merged category, or
    c. unit of measure;
    iv. if the quantity being entered is greater than the quantity 
in the transmission.
    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 the Philippines is 
required before a shipment that has been denied entry for one of the 
circumstances mentioned above will be released.
    D. Visa waivers will only be considered if the shipment 
qualifies as a one-time special purpose shipment that is not part of 
an ongoing commercial enterprise. A visa waiver may be issued by the 
Department of Commerce at the request of the Philippine Embassy in 
Washington, D.C. for the Philippines. A visa waiver only waives the 
requirement to present an ELVIS transmission at entry and does not 
waive any quota requirements.
    E. In the event of a systems failure, shipments will not be 
released for twenty-four hours or one calendar day. If system 
failure exceeds twenty-four hours or one calendar day, for the 
remaining period of the system failure the U.S. Customs Service will 
release shipments on the basis of the visa data provided by the 
Philippines.
    Exempt Certification Requirements:
    A. Shipments of the Philippine textile products listed below 
will be exempt from the levels of restraint (quotas) and ELVIS 
transmission requirements if they are certified, prior to 
exportation, by the Philippines as handmade or handicraft products 
as described below by the placing of an original rectangular-shaped 
stamped marking in blue ink on the front of the original commercial 
invoice. Exempt certification affixed to duplicate copies of the 
invoice shall not be accepted. The shipment must be accompanied by 
the original copy of the invoice with the original exempt 
certification for entry into the United States. The following 
products may be so certified:
    1. Handmade articles and garments of handwoven and handloomed 
fabric: all items must be cut, sewn, or otherwise fabricated by hand 
in order to qualify for this exemption. They may not include machine 
stitching.
    2. Traditional folklore handicraft products: ``Philippine 
items'' defined as items that are traditional Philippine products, 
cut, sewn or otherwise fabricated by hand in cottage units of the 
cottage industry and may not include machine stitching, including:
    i. Batik and Hablon Fabrics - Handwoven by the cottage industry
    ii. Banaue Cloth - Cotton handloom fabric in multi-colors
    iii. Other handwoven and handloom fabrics of the cottage 
industry iv. Articles and garments made by hand from handwoven and 
handloomed fabrics
    B. Requirements for exempt certification stamp: Each exempt 
certification stamp must include the following information:
    1. Date of issuance
    2. Signature of issuing official; and
    3. The basis for the exemption must be noted as:
    i. Handwoven fabric of handloomed fabric (whichever is 
appropriate)
    ii. Handmade textile products, or
    iii. The name of the particular traditional folklore handicraft 
product (Philippines items) as defined above.
    C. Should a shipment be exported from the Philippines without an 
exempt certification issued prior to the date of exportation, or 
should the certification be incorrectly certified (i.e., the date of 
issuance, signature or basis for the exemption is missing, incorrect 
or illegible, or has been crossed out or altered in any way), then 
the exempt certification will not be accepted and entry shall not be 
permitted unless a visa waiver is obtained.
    D. If the exempt certification does not meet these requirements, 
a visa waiver must be obtained prior to release of any portion of 
the shipment. An exempt certification may not be issued after the 
exportation of the shipment from the Philippines. The shipment will 
be charged to the appropriate quota level.
    Other Provisions:
    A. The date of export is the actual date the merchandise finally 
leaves the Philippines. For merchandise exported by carrier, this is 
the day on which the carrier last departs the Philippines.
    B. Textile product integrated into the General Agreement on 
Tariffs and Trade 1994 by the United States in accordance with the 
WTO Agreement on Textiles and Clothing do not require a 
transmission.
    C. Merchandise imported for personal use of the importer and not 
for resale, regardless of value, and properly marked commercial 
sample shipments valued at $800 dollars or less do not require a 
transmission or exempt certification for entry and shall not be 
charged to agreements levels.
    The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements has 
determined that these 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,
William J. Dulka,
Acting Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile 
Agreements.


ANNEX A

           The following is a list of merged categories visas:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
331/631
333/334
338/339
340/640
341/641
342/642
347/348
351/651
352/652
359-C/659-C
359-O/659-O
445/446
638/639
645/646
647/648
------------------------------------------------------------------------


             The following is a list of part-category visas:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
359-C
359-O (other than 359-C)
369-S
369-O (other than 369-S)
659-C
659-H
659-O (other than 659-C, 659-H)
669-P
669-O (other than 669-P)
670-L
670 O (other than 670-L)
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------

[FR Doc. 02-23149 Filed 9-11-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DR-S