While the U.S. government is still reviewing the petition filed against the extension of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) trade benefit for Sri Lanka, President Obama signed into law the reauthorization of the GSP which allows reimbursement of tariffs to Sri Lankan exporters.
President Obama signed into law on Friday the reauthorization of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) to become effective November 5, 2011 and tol remain in effect through July 31, 2013. The bill also makes GSP benefits retroactive to January 1, 2011.
The US Embassy in Colombo said in a release that as the GSP program was renewed retroactively, Sri Lankan exporters will be reimbursed for tariffs paid during the gap period. Exporters who filed their entries electronically used the appropriate special programs indicator (SPI).
The GSP was instituted on January 1, 1976, by the Trade Act of 1974. The United States’ GSP is a program designed to promote economic growth in the developing world by providing preferential duty-free entry for up to 4,800 products from 129 designated beneficiary countries and territories, including Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka benefited from GSP treatment on approximately $147 million of goods in 2010.
As part of the normal GSP process in the United States, the U.S. Trade Representative’s office (USTR) receives petitions to withdraw or limit a country’s benefits on criteria including whether a country is taking steps to afford internationally recognized standards for worker rights. In the context of the 2009 review, USTR accepted petitions to review whether Sri Lanka met GSP eligibility criteria related to worker rights. That review is still pending and the U.S. Government continues to have productive discussions with the Government of Sri Lanka. GSP benefits are unaffected throughout this review process.