What Happened This Month in International Trade (March 2026) | Customs & International Trade Law Blog

One other busy month in customs & worldwide commerce information: 

Court docket of Worldwide Commerce (CIT) 

On March 4, 2026, Choose Eaton issued a powerful and detailed order requiring the refunds of IEEPA Tariffs. We count on the federal government to attraction this order. Choose Eaton issued subsequent orders: (i) suspending the earlier order to permit CBP time to implement their refund course of; (ii) amending the earlier order to incorporate Brazil and India IEEPA tariffs.  
New York Lawyer Common Letitia James and prosecutors from 23 different states filed a lawsuit within the CIT to dam President Trump’s international tariff regime underneath Part 122 and order refunds to states.  

Administration   

President Trump issued a 60-day waiver to the Jones Act, briefly permitting foreign-flagged ships carrying oil and gasoline to journey between US ports. 

Customs and Border Safety (CBP)    

CBP dominated that the submission of a CBP Type 5106 on an importer’s behalf constitutes “customs enterprise” and requires a dealer license.  
CBP’s Commerce and Cargo Safety Summit has been rescheduled to Sept. 8-10, from its authentic dates in April. CBP mentioned that is because of the DHS lapse in appropriations. 

Congress   

U.S. Home Consultant Steube launched a invoice that will ban the import of vitality storage methods that embody distant monitoring capabilities, if they’re made by Chinese language-owned corporations, or made with know-how licensed from Chinese language corporations.  
A bunch of democrat U.S. Home Representatives launched a invoice known as the Tariff Free Farming Act to finish larger tariffs on farming merchandise, together with metal, lumber, fencing, tractors, combines, substitute elements, animal feed, fertilizer, and extra.  
The Securing Accountability in Overseas Entries (SAFE) Act has been launched in each the Home and Senate. The invoice would prohibit who can act as an importer of report, in an try and restrict non-resident IORs. 

Division of Commerce   

A brand new antidumping and countervailing responsibility motion has been filed in opposition to large-diameter graphite electrodes from China and India. The allegation is that imports from China and India are unfairly sponsored and are being dumped.   

Bureau of Trade and Safety (BIS)  

BIS introduced an Administrative Enforcement Settlement with Teledyne FLIR LLC and its associates for 19 EAR violations involving the corporate’s export of thermal imaging cameras to China.  

United States Commerce Consultant (USTR)    

Consultant Greer delivered President Trump’s 2026 Commerce Coverage Agenda and 2025 Annual Report back to Congress. The Report presents a complete account of USTR’s actions to assist President Trump’s commerce agenda, together with negotiations with key buying and selling companions to guard U.S. jobs and broaden market entry for U.S. exporters.  
USTR launched the findings of its 2025 Evaluate of Infamous Markets for Counterfeiting and Piracy (the Infamous Markets Listing).  The listing recognized 37 on-line markets and 32 bodily markets which might be reported to interact in or facilitate substantial trademark counterfeiting or copyright piracy.   
On March 12, 2026, USTR initiated a Part 301 Investigation into the practices of assorted economies, together with these of US allies and long-standing commerce companions, for his or her alleged failure to ban the importation of products produced with compelled labor.   

Workplace of Overseas Belongings Management (OFAC)      

OFAC issued six new Venezuela-related Often Requested Questions.  
OFAC designated 4 “sham” charities that immediately fund Hamas’s Navy Wing and its terrorist actions. Individuals are blocked and should be reported to OFAC. 
OFAC introduced that TradeStation Securities, Inc. has agreed to pay $1.1M to settle its potential civil legal responsibility for 481 obvious violations of OFAC sanctions applications arising from the corporate’s provision of brokerage and funding companies to individuals in Iran, Syria, and Crimea. 

Meals and Drug Administration (FDA)    

On March 5, 2026, the FDA revealed a Remaining Rule adopting a brand new format for the Nationwide Drug Code (NDC). The rule takes impact on March 7, 2033.  

Client Product Security Fee (CPSC)   

A Japanese manufacturing firm has agreed to pay an $11.5 million civil penalty following fees that the corporate knowingly did not report back to CPSC that a few of its bicycle fashions contained a defect that would create a severe danger of damage or demise to customers.  

Federal Maritime Fee (FMC) 

The FMC has denied requests from a number of ocean carriers for particular permission to extend charges on containers affected by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.