Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act in Effect June 21

Workers in Chinese Factory w/ Barbed Wire (Photo Courtesy of the Coalition to End Forced Labour in the Uyghur Region)

Trade Update • May 11, 2022

T he Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) was signed into law on December 23, 2021 to ensure that American entities are not funding forced labour China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

UFLPA establishes a rebuttable presumption that the importation of any goods, wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China, or produced by certain entities, is prohibited by Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 and that such goods, wares, articles, and merchandise are not entitled to entry to the United States.

The presumption applies unless U.S. Customs and Border Protection determines that the importer of record has complied with specified conditions and, by clear and convincing evidence, that the goods, wares, articles, or merchandise were not produced using forced labor.

Supply Chain Review

The UFLPA rebuttable presumption will go into effect on Tuesday, June 21, 2022. We encourage importers who have previously imported merchandise that could be subject to UFLPA to review of their supply chain to ensure that they are not importing goods produced with forced labour.

Risk Examples

The risk to Canadian businesses of such goods entering the supply chain was illustrated recently by cases in which national retailers were found to be selling garments allegedly made with forced labor in Chinese factories or using tomato products harvested and manufactured in China by Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities under oppressive working conditions.

Do you need help in reviewing your supply chain for to ensure your imports are compliant? Contact us, we’re here to help.

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