[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 58 (Wednesday, March 26, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14586-14588]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-7189]


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

COMMITTEE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE AGREEMENTS


Consolidation and Amendment of Export Visa Requirements to 
Include the Electronic Visa Information System for Certain Cotton, Man-
Made Fiber, Silk Blend and Other Vegetable Fiber Textiles and Textile 
Products Produced or Manufactured in Pakistan

March 20, 2003.
AGENCY: Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA)

ACTION: Issuing a directive to the Commissioner, Bureau of Customs and 
Border Protection consolidating and amending visa requirements.

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

EFFECTIVE DATE: April 11, 2003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shikha Bhatnagar, 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.
    On March 13, 2003, the Governments of the United States and 
Pakistan signed an agreement amending the existing Visa Arrangement for 
cotton, man-made fiber, silk blend and other vegetable fiber textiles 
and textile products in Categories 200-239, 300-361, 363-369 (excluding 
369-O), 600-670, and 800-899, including part categories and merged 
categories, but not category 369-O, produced or manufactured in 
Pakistan. The amended Arrangement consolidates existing provisions and 
establishes new provisions for the Electronic Visa Information System 
(ELVIS). The Governments of the United States and Pakistan will 
implement a 6-month test phase in which, in addition to the ELVIS 
requirements, shipments must continue to be accompanied by a paper 
visa. This notice amends, but does not cancel, the notice and letter to 
the Commissioner of Customs, as amended, published in the Federal 
Register on June 6, 1983 (see 48 FR 25257).
    A description of the textile and apparel categories in terms of HTS

[[Page 14587]]

numbers is available in the CORRELATION: Textile and Apparel Categories 
with the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (see Federal 
Register notice 68 FR 1599, published on January 13, 2003).
    Goods integrated into GATT 1994 in Stages II and III by the United 
States will not require a visa or ELVIS transmission (see Federal 
Register notices 63 FR 53881, published on October 7, 1998 and 66 FR 
63225, published on December 5, 2001.
    Interested persons are advised to take all necessary steps to 
ensure that textile products 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, Bureau of Customs and Border Protection.

James C. Leonard III,
Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.

Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements

March 20, 2003.

Commissioner,
Bureau of Customs and Border Protection, Washington, DC 20229.
    Dear Commissioner: This directive amends, but does not cancel, 
the directive issued to you on May 27, 1983, as amended, by the 
Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements. 
Under the terms of Section 204 of the Agricultural Act of 1956, as 
amended (7 U.S.C. 1854); and pursuant to the Uruguay Round Agreement 
on Textiles and Clothing and the Visa, ELVIS and Exempt 
Certification Arrangement, signed on March 13, 2003, between the 
Governments of the United States and Pakistan; and in accordance 
with the provisions of Executive Order 11651 of March 3, 1972, as 
amended, you are directed to prohibit 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, man-made fiber, 
silk blend and other vegetable fiber textiles and textile products 
in Categories 200-239, 300-361, 363-369 (excluding 369-O), 600-670, 
and 800-899, including part categories and merged categories, but 
not category 369-O, produced or manufactured in Pakistan and 
exported on or after April 11, 2003 for which the Government of 
Pakistan has not issued an appropriate export visa and Electronic 
Visa Information System (ELVIS) transmission fully described below. 
Should additional categories, part-categories or merged categories 
become subject to import quotas, the entire category(s), part-
category(s) or merged category(s) shall be included in the coverage 
of this Arrangement. The original visa in blue ink shall be stamped 
on the front of the original commercial invoice.
    A visa must accompany each shipment of the aforementioned 
textile products.
Visa Requirements
    Each visa stamp will include the following information:
    1. The visa number. The visa number shall 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 code specified by the International Organization for 
Standardization (ISO) (The code for Pakistan is PK), and a six digit 
numerical serial number identifying the shipment; e.g., 3PK123456.
    2. The date of issuance. The date of issuance shall be the day, 
month, and year on which the visa was issued.
    3. The original signature of the issuing official authorized by 
the Government of Pakistan.
    4. The correct category(s), merged category(s), part 
category(s), quantity(s), and units of quantity in the shipment in 
the units(s) of quantity provided for in the U.S. Department of 
Commerce Correlation and in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the 
United States (HTSUS), e.g., ``Cat. 340-510 DZ''.
    Quantities must be stated in whole numbers. Decimals or 
fractions will not be accepted. Merged category quota merchandise 
may be accompanied by either the appropriate merged category visa or 
the correct category visa corresponding to the actual shipment. (For 
example, quota Category 347/348 may be visaed as ``Cat. 347/348'' or 
if the shipment consists solely of Category 347 merchandise, the 
shipment may be visaed as ``Cat. 347,'' but not as ``Cat. 348'').
    The Bureau of Customs and Border Protection shall not permit 
entry if the shipment does not have a visa, or if the visa number, 
date of issuance, signature, category, quantity are missing, 
incorrect, illegible, or have been crossed out or altered in any 
way. If the quantity indicated on the visa is less than that of the 
shipment, entry shall not be permitted. If the quantity indicated on 
the visa is more than that of the shipment, entry shall be permitted 
and only the amount entered shall be charged to any applicable 
quota.
    Quantities shall be those determined by the Bureau of Customs 
and Border Protection.
    If the visa is not acceptable then a new visa must be obtained 
from the Pakistan Government or a visa waiver issued by the U.S. 
Department of Commerce at the request of the Pakistan Government and 
presented to the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection before any 
portion of the shipment will be released. The waiver, if used, only 
waives the requirement to present a visa with the shipment. It does 
not waive the quota requirement. Visa waivers will only be issued 
for classification purposes or for one-time special purpose 
shipments that are not part of an ongoing commercial enterprise.
    If the visaed invoice is deficient, the Bureau of Customs and 
Border Protection will not return the original document after entry, 
but will provide a certified copy of that visaed invoice for use in 
obtaining a new correct original visaed invoice, or a visa waiver.
    Only the actual quantity in the shipment and the correct 
category will be charged to the restraint level.
ELVIS Requirements:
    A. Each ELVIS transmission shall include the following 
information:
    i. The visa number: The visa number shall 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 code specified by the International Organization for 
Standardization (ISO) (The code for Pakistan is PK), and a six digit 
numerical serial number identifying the shipment; e.g., 3PK123456.
    ii. The date of issuance: The date of issuance shall be the day, 
month and year on which the visa was issued.
    iii. The correct category(s), merged category(s), part 
category(s), quantity(s), and unit(s) of quantity of the shipment in 
the unit(s) of quantity provided for in the U.S. Department of 
Commerce Correlation and in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the 
United States. Quantities must be stated in whole numbers. Decimals 
or fractions will not be accepted.
    iv. The quantity of the shipment in the correct units of 
quantity
    v. The manufacturer ID number (MID)
    B. Entry of a shipment shall not be permitted:
    I. if an ELVIS transmission has not been received for the 
shipment from the Government of Pakistan;
    II.if the ELVIS transmission for that shipment is missing any of 
the following information:
    i) visa number
    ii) category, part category, or merged category
    iii) quantity
    iv) unit of measure
    v) date of issuance
    vi) manufacturer ID number
    III. if the ELVIS transmission for the shipment does not match 
the information supplied by the importer, or the Customs broker 
acting as an agent on behalf of the importer, with regard to any of 
the following:
    i) visa number
    ii) category, part category, or merged category
    iii) unit of measure
    IV. If the quantity being entered is greater than the quantity 
transmitted.
    V. If the visa number has previously been used, except in the 
case of a split shipment, or cancelled, except when entry has 
already been made using the visa number.
    C. A new, correct ELVIS transmission from the Government of 
Pakistan is required before a shipment that has been denied entry 
for one the circumstances mentioned above will be released.
    D. Visa waivers will only be accepted if the shipment qualifies 
for 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 Pakistan Embassy in 
Washington, DC. A visa waiver only waives the requirements to 
present an ELVIS transmission at the time of entry, and doesn't 
waive any quota requirements.

[[Page 14588]]

    E. In the event of a systems failure, shipments will not be 
released for twenty-four hours or 1 calendar day. If system failure 
exceeds twenty-four hours or 1 calendar day, for the remaining 
period of the system failure the Bureau of Customs and Border 
Protection will release shipments on the basis of the visa data 
provided by the Government of Pakistan. Pakistan will retransmit all 
data that was affected by the systems failure when the system is 
functioning normally.
Shipments not requiring visas, ELVIS transmission or exempt 
certifications:
    Merchandise imported for the personal use of the importer and 
not for resale, regardless of value, and properly marked commercial 
sample shipments valued at U.S. $800 or less do not require a visa, 
an ELVIS transmission or exempt certification for entry and shall 
not be charged to Agreement levels.
Other Provisions:
    An invoice may cover visaed merchandise or exempt certification 
merchandise but not both.
    Goods integrated into GATT 1994 in Stages II and III by the 
United States will not require a visa or ELVIS transmission (see 
Federal Register notices 63 FR 53881, published on October 7, 1998 
and 66 FR 63225, published on December 5, 2001, respectively). A 
visa and ELVIS transmission will continue to be required for non-
integrated products.
    The visa stamp remains unchanged. The Exempt Certification 
requirements remain unchanged.
    The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements has 
determined that this action fall with the foreign affairs exception 
to the rulemaking provisions of 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1).
    Sincerely,
James C. Leonard III,
Chairman, Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements.
[FR Doc. 03-7189 Filed 3-25-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DR-S