Business Management case study – U.S.-Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act (CBTPA)

The U.S.-Caribbean Basin Partnership Act of 2000 provides for the duty-free entry of the products from beneficiary countries. This program expires on Sep- tember 30, 2020 or sooner on the date when a free-trade agreement enters into force between the United States and a CBTPA beneficiary country. The CBTPA expands the trade benefits available under the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act (CBERA). It allows specific textile and apparel articles to enter the United States free of duty and restrictions on quantity, provided certain conditions are met. It also extends NAFTA standards of duty to non-textile articles that were previously excluded from duty-free treatment under the CBERA.
Beneficiary Countries of CBTPA (Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act)¹⁰
Barbados Belize Guyana Haiti Jamaica Panama St. Lucia Trinidad and Tobago
Caribbean countries which have a free trade agreement with the United States and were excluded from CBTPA: Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua
Eligibility Requirements
(1) The country of origin must be designated a beneficiary country by the President
(2) Articles must be identified by an “R” in “Special” subcolumn of Rates of Duty Column 1 of the HTSUS such as 4202.12.20 for bags.
(3) The merchandise must be imported directly from a beneficiary country into the United States.
(4) The merchandise must have been produced in a beneficiary country. This requirement is satisfied when
a. The merchandise is wholly (100 percent) the growth, product, or manu- facture of one or more designated beneficiary countries or
b. The merchandise has been substantially transformed into a new and different article of commerce in a beneficiary country.
c. For any product incorporating imported materials, the regional value content must not be less than 60 percent of the appraised value when the transaction value method is used or not less than 50 percent of the appraised value when the net cost method is used. The regional value content is the sum of the cost or value of the materials produced in a designated beneficiary country or countries and the direct cost of pro- cessing operations in the designated beneficiary country or countries.