Commerce, DHS partner to facilitate e-commerce, boost enforcement

The departments of Commerce and Homeland Security have entered an agreement to work together to facilitate international e-commerce and strengthen enforcement of U.S. customs laws related to these shipments.    The U.S. departments of Commerce and Homeland Security have entered a memorandum of agreement (MOA) to work together to facilitate international e-commerce and strengthen enforcement of U.S. customs laws related to these shipments. 
   “Worldwide retail e-commerce sales are expected to top $2.4 trillion by 2018, up 26 percent from 2016,” Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in a statement. “Having the infrastructure in place to help U.S. companies compete for these e-commerce sales is crucial to our nation’s position in the global marketplace.”
   “A new generation of companies and technologies involved in e-commerce changes the nature in which federal agencies engage with the private sector,” added DHS Assistant Secretary for Border, Immigration, and Trade Policy Michael Dougherty. “Partnerships like this MOA with Commerce will help us address these challenges together as one U.S. government.”
   Commerce and DHS, via the MOA, plan to help small businesses better understand and comply with policies and procedures for e-commerce and the distribution of those goods, as well as seek to eliminate burdensome tariff and non-tariff barriers to these shipments. 
   Meanwhile, the departments said they will continue their efforts to root out illicit uses of e-commerce, such as weapons and drug smuggling, as well as preserve and even strengthen laws that protect against intellectual property rights and public health and safety violations.
   Through the MOA, Commerce and DHS also intend to work with overseas governments to improve the facilitation of international e-commerce. This includes meeting through the World Customs Organization’s E-Commerce Working Group to discuss ways to improve and streamline cross-border processes as they pertain to e-commerce.