Assist

Summary of Assist

Inputs to production, including tools, dies, blueprints, designs, or development engineering provided by an American importer to a foreign manufacturer for use in producing merchandise for export to the United States. Such inputs must be declared to U.S. Customs on the first importation of the merchandise into the United States. The value of the assists may be subject to U.S. duties, on the rationale that, had the foreign manufacturer procured the inputs locally, they would have been included in the sale price to the American importer, and would have been subject to duty. In most cases, duty on the value of the assists may be paid upon first importation of the goods, or amortized over the life of the production cycle. The Trade Act of 1979 removed U.S. research and design work from the category of assists on the grounds that these were American ideas returned.

(Main Author: William J. Miller)

Definition of Assist in International Trade

The following is a concept of Assist in the context of international trade law, from the Dictionary of International Trade (Global Negotiator): A customs term for types of help rendered to a seller by a buyer, such as pro_duction tooling, design work, etc. Under certain circumstances, in some countries, the dutiable value of imported goods must be increased by the value of assists.