Effective March 18, 2023 – Postal Code to be Required for Goods Imported from China
Customs and Border Production (CBP) posted a Trade User Information Notice on January 26, 2023 advising of a new requirement, effective March 18, 2023, for the trade to provide the China postal code for all imports from China. This new requirement will provide CBP increased ability to identify imports subject to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA).
The postal code will be a required data element for making entry of China-originating goods and will affect Cargo Release. Effective March 18th, if the postal code is missing or inaccurate, CBP will send an error message to the Trade User (Entry Filer/Broker) and the cargo will not be released until the error is corrected. IF the postal code indicates that the goods may have been produced in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (Xinjiang or XUAR), the entry will be detained and may be excluded from entry into the U.S. The UFLPA presumes that goods made in the Xinjiang region of China are made with forced labor. When entries are flagged for UFLPA, the importer will have the opportunity to provide documentation to support the lack of forced labor in the production of the goods to obtain the release of the goods. CBP provides guidance for importers for requesting an exception to the UFLPA detention, exclusion, or seizure of the goods. The CBP Importer Guidance can be found here.
If you are importing goods from China, it is critical that you review the manufacturer or supplier addresses now to include the correct postal code. Importers of textiles must always provide the actual manufacturer address. Make sure your shippers provide the full address, including the postal code, on all shipping documents. Additionally, to ensure the timely release of goods, we ask our customers to provide updated addresses prior to March 18, 2023. This will allow us the ability to update our systems to make timely and accurate entry of your goods.
More information on the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFPLA) can be found here.