The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement eliminates duties on goods that meet its rules of origin. But proving qualification requires tariff shift analysis, regional value content calculations, and proper certification — work that most importers skip because it is too complex. Our engine automates the entire process: analyze your BOM, verify tariff shifts against Annex 4-B, calculate RVC using both TV and NC methods, and generate the certificate of origin. If your goods qualify, you should not be paying duties you do not owe.
Goods entirely grown, harvested, fished, or extracted in one or more USMCA countries. Agricultural products grown in Mexico, minerals mined in Canada, fish caught in US waters. No non-originating materials involved. This is the simplest criterion but applies only to raw or minimally processed goods.
Goods produced entirely in one or more USMCA countries, exclusively from originating materials. A furniture maker in Mexico using only Canadian lumber and US hardware qualifies. Every input must itself be originating — either wholly obtained (Criterion A) or qualifying under its own PSR.
Goods produced in a USMCA country using non-originating materials that satisfy the product-specific rule of origin in Annex 4-B. This is the most common criterion. It typically requires a change in tariff classification (chapter, heading, or subheading change) and may additionally require a minimum Regional Value Content percentage.
Goods that do not meet the tariff shift rule but qualify under other provisions — such as the de minimis rule (Article 4.12), intermediate materials designation, fungible goods provisions, or accumulation with materials from other USMCA countries. The engine evaluates all available provisions to find a qualifying path.
Provide the finished product description, HTS code, country of final assembly, and bill of materials (BOM) with component origins and values. If you do not have a detailed BOM, our engine can work with a simplified version — materials, their HS codes, countries of origin, and cost percentages. The more detail, the more accurate the qualification analysis.
The engine checks whether the transformation from input materials to finished product satisfies the applicable Product-Specific Rule of Origin (PSR) in USMCA Annex 4-B. This typically requires a change in tariff classification — from one HS chapter, heading, or subheading to another. The analysis maps each input component against the finished good to verify that non-originating materials undergo the required shift.
For products where tariff shift alone is insufficient or where RVC is an alternative qualification method, the engine calculates Regional Value Content using both the Transaction Value (TV) method and the Net Cost (NC) method per USMCA Article 4.5. The TV method uses the formula: RVC = ((TV - VNM) / TV) x 100. The NC method uses: RVC = ((NC - VNM) / NC) x 100. Both results are presented so you can choose the more favorable method.
If the product qualifies, the engine generates a USMCA Certificate of Origin with all nine required data elements per Article 5.2. The certificate includes the certifier information, producer details, HS classification in each country, origin criterion code (A through D), and blanket period if applicable. The SPI indicator "S" is attached to the entry filing for preferential duty treatment.
USMCA eliminates duties on originating goods traded between the US, Mexico, and Canada. For products that currently pay 5-25% duty under MFN rates, qualification means those duties drop to zero. The savings compound on every shipment — for high-volume importers, this can mean millions in annual duty savings.
CBP can request origin verification up to five years after importation. Our system maintains the complete qualification analysis — BOM, tariff shift mapping, RVC calculations, and the certificate of origin — so your compliance team can respond to a verification request without scrambling to reconstruct records.
USMCA applies to goods originating in Mexico, Canada, or the United States. Our engine handles the accumulation rules — materials originating in any USMCA country count as originating for purposes of the tariff shift and RVC analysis. This is particularly important for automotive, textiles, and agricultural supply chains that span all three countries.
Under USMCA Article 4.12, a good that does not satisfy the applicable tariff shift rule may still qualify if the value of non-originating materials that failed to shift does not exceed 10% of the transaction value (7% for certain textiles). The engine automatically applies the de minimis threshold when tariff shift analysis fails.
USMCA introduced Labor Value Content (LVC) requirements unique to automotive. At least 40-45% of vehicle value must come from production at facilities paying $16+/hour. Our engine tracks LVC requirements for automotive HTS codes and flags when additional documentation is needed from your supply chain.
Before you invest in a full BOM analysis, run a quick screen with just the product HTS code and country of origin. The engine tells you whether USMCA preference is available for that product, what the applicable PSR requires, and the estimated duty savings if you qualify. Decide whether to pursue qualification before doing the detailed work.
Run a quick USMCA qualification screen on your top products. If they qualify, we handle the origin analysis, certificate generation, and preferential filing — you keep the duty savings.
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