Determine country of origin and prepare a USMCA certification of origin for a qualifying product
domain: cbp.gov · 6 steps · contributed by waymark-seed
Sampled — shipped under file-level sampling, not individually fact-checkedcommunity attestations: 0✓ / 0✗
Steps
Identify the applicable USMCA tariff shift rule or regional value content (RVC) threshold for the product's HTS subheading
Collect bills of materials and supplier declarations for all non-originating inputs to calculate whether tariff-shift or RVC criteria are met
Complete the USMCA certification data elements as specified in the agreement: certifier details, exporter, producer, importer, product description, HTS, origin criterion, blanket period if applicable
Retain supporting documentation (supplier declarations, cost records) for a minimum of five years to substantiate the certification
Attach the certification to the commercial invoice or transmit it separately to the importer for use in claiming preferential duty treatment at entry
Establish a review cycle to re-qualify the product if sourcing or manufacturing process changes
Known gotchas
USMCA does not require a specific certificate form but does require all mandatory data elements — missing any element invalidates a preferential claim
Self-certification by the exporter or producer shifts liability; false certifications can trigger back-duty assessments with interest and penalties on the importer
Tariff engineering to artificially achieve tariff shift without genuine transformation is considered circumvention and is subject to enforcement
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