Textiles from Austria on USTR List for Potential 25% Tariff

On March 31, 2021, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) published in the Federal Register (86 FR 16816) a request for written comments regarding a potential trade action in connection with the Section 301 investigation of Austria's Digital Services Tax (DST). USTR also will convene virtual public hearings and accept rebuttal comments in relation to the potential action.

Comments are due by April 30, 2021.

Austria has adopted a DST that imposes a 5% tax on gross revenues from digital advertising services provided in Austria. The DST applies only to companies with annual global revenues of [euro]750 million or more, and annual revenues from digital advertising services in Austria of [euro]25 million or more.

On January 14, 2021, based on information obtained during a investigation and the advice of the Section 301 Committee, the U.S. Trade Representative determined that Austria's DST is unreasonable or discriminatory and burdens or restricts U.S. commerce, and therefore is actionable under sections 301(b) and 304(a) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 2411(b) and 2414(a))

USTR proposes to impose additional tariffs of up to 25 percent ad valorem on a list of goods from Austria.

The list published at 86 FR 16816 is quite extensive and contains the following articles of protential interest to clients of Agathon Associates.

Note: All products that are classified in the eight-digit subheadings of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) that are listed in this Annex are covered by the proposed action. The product descriptions that are contained in this Annex are provided for informational purposes only, and are not intended to delimit in any way the scope of the proposed action. Any questions regarding the scope of a particular HTSUS subheading should be referred to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. In the product descriptions, the abbreviation ``nesoi'' means ``not elsewhere specified or included''.

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      HTSUS subheading                   Product description
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5209.12.00.................  Unbleached 3- or 4-thread twill fabrics of
                              cotton, including cross twill, 85 percent
                              or more cotton by weight, weighing more
                              than 200 g/m2.
5402.49.91.................  Other yarns, monofil; multifil, untwisted
                              or twisted > or = to 5, not exceeding 50
                              turns per meter of other synthetic, not
                              for retail sale.
5404.19.10.................  Racket strings of synthetic monofilament of
                              67 decitex or more and of which no cross-
                              sectional dimension exceeds 1 mm.
5404.19.80.................  Synthetic monofilament (exc.
                              polypropylene), of 67 decitex or more and
                              with no cross-sectional dimension > 1 mm,
                              nesoi.
5603.94.10.................  Nonwoven floor covering underlays (not of
                              man-made filaments), weighing >150 g/
                              square m, whether or not impreg, coated,
                              cov or laminated.
5603.94.90.................  Nonwovens nesoi (not of man-made
                              filaments), weighing >150 g/square m,
                              whether or not impregnated, coated,
                              covered but not laminated.
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