Interim Procedures for Considering Requests and Comments from the Public under the Textile and Apparel Safeguard Provision of the U.S.–Korea Free Trade Agreement

The United States and Korea negotiated the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement (the Agreement), effective March 15, 2012. Article 4.1 of the Agreement provides for a textile and apparel safeguard mechanism. This safeguard mechanism applies when, as a result of the reduction or elimination of a customs duty under the Agreement, a Korean textile or apparel article is being imported into the United States in such increased quantities, in absolute terms or relative to the domestic market for that article, and under such conditions as to cause serious damage or actual threat thereof to a U.S. industry producing a like or directly competitive article. In these circumstances, Article 4.1 permits the United States to (a) suspend any further reduction in the rate of duty provided for under Annex 2-B of the Agreement in the duty imposed on the article; or (b) increase duties on the imported article from Korea to a level that does not exceed the lesser of the prevailing U.S. normal trade relations (“NTR")/most-favored-nation ("MFN") duty rate for the article or the U.S. NTR/MFN duty rate in effect on the day before the Agreement enters into force. This right becomes effective when the Agreement enters into force on March 15, 2012. The Statement of Administrative Action accompanying the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act (the “Act”) provides that the Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA) will issue procedures for requesting such safeguard measures, for making its determinations under section 332(a) of the Act, and for providing relief under section 332(b) of the Act. In Proclamation No. 8783 (77 FR 14265, March 9, 2012), the President delegated to CITA his authority under Subtitle C of Title III of the Act with respect to textile and apparel safeguard measures.

The latest form for Interim Procedures for Considering Requests and Comments from the Public under the Textile and Apparel Safeguard Provision of the U.S.–Korea Free Trade Agreement expires 2022-06-30 and can be found here.

Comments to Request Textile Safeguard Action Determination

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