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HQ 563362

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December 11, 2005

CLA-02 RR:CTF:VS 563362 DCC

CATEGORY: VALUATION

Mr. Tim Darst
UPS Supply Chain Solutions, Inc.
1930 Bishop Lane, Suite 200
Louisville, KY 40218

RE: Currency conversion, 19 C.F.R. 152.1(c)

Dear Mr. Darst:

This is in response to your letter dated October 17, 2005, requesting a ruling on behalf of UPS Supply Chain Solutions, Inc. (“UPS”). Your request concerns the appropriate currency exchange rate for the valuation of imported merchandise. This ruling only applies to customs transactions in which a daily exchange rate is used.

FACTS:

UPS provides customs brokerage services for U.S. importers. Occasionally, when merchandise is shipped via air freight from a foreign port of export to the United States, the flight may depart before the daily exchange rates for the foreign currency are published. Currency exchange rates are published daily by the U.S. Federal Reserve in New York.

Depending on the port of exportation and the time of departure, the currency exchange rate may not be available until after the time of export and the time of entry in the United States. In the event a flight departs the foreign port of exportation before the daily currency exchange rates are published, you propose using the currency exchange rates published on the day before the date of exportation for entry filing purposes and subsequently adjusting the entered value at the time you file the entry summary based on the actual exchange rates published on the date of exportation.

ISSUE:

Whether an importer may use currency exchange rates published the day before the date of exportation for customs valuation purposes when the daily currency exchange rates are not published until after the time of shipment from the foreign port of exportation, provided the entered value is adjusted at the time the entry summary is filed to reflect the currency exchange rates for the date of exportation.

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

For purposes of this ruling we assume that transaction value is the proper basis of appraisement. Pursuant to Section 402(b)(1) of the Trade Agreements Act of 1979 (“TAA,” codified at 19 U.S.C. 1401a), the transaction value of imported merchandise is the “price actually paid or payable for the merchandise when sold for exportation to the United States.”

Section 152.1(c), Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) Regulations (19 C.F.R. 152.1(c)) provides that the date of exportation or time of exportation referred to in section 402 of the TAA, “means the actual date the merchandise finally leaves the country of exportation for the United States.” Moreover, section 159.32, CBP Regulations (19 C.F.R. 159.32) provides that “the date of exportation for currency conversion shall be fixed in accordance with § 152.1(c) of this chapter.”

Based on the circumstances in this case, we find that when daily currency exchange rates are not available until after the time of shipment from the foreign port of exportation an importer may use the currency exchange rate published the day before the date of exportation for entry filing purposes (Customs Form 3461), provided the importer adjusts the entered value based on the actual currency exchange rates published on the date of exportation at the time of filing the entry summary (Customs Form 7501) in accordance with CBP Regulation 159.32.

HOLDING:

When daily currency exchange rates are not available until after the time of shipment from the foreign port of exportation an importer may use the published currency exchange rate for the day before the date of exportation for entry filing purposes, provided the importer adjusts the entered value to reflect the currency exchange rates published on the date of exportation at the time of filing the entry summary (Customs Form 7501).

A copy of this ruling should be attached to the entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is entered. If the documents have been filed without a copy, this ruling should be brought to the attention of the CBP officer handling the transaction.

Sincerely,

Monika R. Brenner, Chief
Valuation and Special Programs Branch

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