The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) added three Chinese genomics companies to its forced-labor import list Oct. 28, subjecting their goods to a presumption that can bar U.S. entry.
DHS named BGI Genomics Co., Ltd., MGI Tech Co., Ltd. and Shenzhen BGI Technology Co., Ltd. in a Federal Register notice announcing additions to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) Entity List. The notice cites alleged ties between the firms and Xinjiang authorities in forced-labor matters involving Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities.
Enacted in 2021, the UFLPA directs U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to presume goods produced by a listed entity were made with forced labor. The presumption applies regardless of where the goods were manufactured, and those goods are barred from U.S. entry unless an importer qualifies for a statutory exception.
An importer of record can qualify only by following CBP guidance, completely and substantively answering all CBP information requests, and establishing by clear and convincing evidence that forced labor was not used to produce the goods. The rebuttable presumption took effect June 21, 2022.
