EAPA Cons. Case Number 7474: Ikadan System USA, Inc. and Weihai Gaosai Metal 2 Product Co., Ltd. (Notice of Determination, June 21, 2021)

WASHINGTON—On June 21, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued its determination as to evasion by Ikadan System USA, Inc. (“Ikadan”) and Weihai Gaosai Metal 2 Product Co., Ltd. (“Gaosai”) (collectively, the Importers) in its Enforce and Protect Act (EAPA) investigation, EAPA Case 7474, into the evasion of antidumping and countervailing duty (AD/CVD) orders A-570-947 and C-570-948 for certain steel grating (steel grating) from the People’s Republic of China (China). CBP found there was substantial evidence that the Importers had been entering subject merchandise from China that had been misclassified. The Importers did not declare that the merchandise was subject to AD/CVD orders upon entry, and no cash deposits were collected on the merchandise. As a result, the Importers evaded a significant amount of AD/CVD duties owed to the U.S. Government.

In light of CBP’s determination that the Importers entered covered merchandise into the customs territory of the United States through evasion, and pursuant to its authorities under EAPA, CBP will continue to:

• Suspend liquidation of unliquidated entries already suspended under this investigation;
• Rate adjust and change to Entry Type 03 entries subject to this investigation and suspend liquidation;
• Reject any entry summaries and require a re-file for those entries that are within the entry summary reject period;
• Require “live” entry for all imports of steel grating meeting the evasion criteria, requiring the importer to submit proper documentation and all duties prior to release of the merchandise; and
• Require single transaction bonds, as appropriate, and evaluate the sufficiency of the Importer’s continuous bonds.

These actions do not preclude CBP from taking additional enforcement measures as it determines appropriate under its EAPA or other legal authorities, which include pursuing civil penalties or investigations into criminal violations.

For additional information on CBP and EAPA, please visit EAPA Trade Enforcement page. If you suspect an importer of duty evasion, CBP encourages you to submit an allegation through our online portal.

Follow CBP Office of Trade on Twitter @CBPTradeGov.