Commercial Information Circulars

24-hour hotline : 23 922 922

e-mail address : enquiry@tid.gov.hk

Ref : EIC 111/1/5/1

28 September 2012

Dear Sirs,

Commercial Information Circular No. 782/2012

US : Initial Determination Revising the List of Products Requiring Federal Contractor Certification as to Forced or Indentured Child Labour Pursuant to Executive Order 13126; and 2012 Update to the List of Goods from Countries Produced by Child
Labour or Forced Labour

The US Department of Labour (DoL) published in the Federal Register of 27 September 2012 a notice proposing to revise the list required by Executive Order 13126 ("Prohibition of Acquisition of Products Produced by Forced or Indentured Child Labour"). DoL also released on 26 September 2012 an updated list pursuant to the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005.

DETAILS

Executive Order 13126

2. Under the procurement regulations implementing Executive Order (EO) 13126, federal contractors who supply products on the relevant list published by DoL must certify that they have made a good faith effort to determine whether forced or indentured child labour was used to produce the products listed. The list was last updated in April 2012.

3. DoL is now proposing to add 6 new line items (i.e., dried fish from Bangladesh, gold and wolframite from the Democratic Republic of Congo, cattle from South Sudan, garments from Vietnam and fish from Ghana) to the list. In this connection, DoL is inviting public comment on its proposed addition by 27 November 2012. For further details including the current list, please refer to the relevant FR notice and DoL's designated webpage on EO 13126 at: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2012-09-27/pdf/2012-23395.pdf; and http://www.dol.gov/ILAB/regs/eo13126/main.htm.

Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act

4. DoL separately released on 26 September 2012 an updated list of goods that it has reason to believe are produced by child labour or forced labour in violation of international standards pursuant to the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005 (TVPRA). The latest update adds 4 new goods (baked goods, beef, fish and thread/yarn) and 3 new countries (South Sudan, Suriname and Vietnam) to the list. For details including the full list, please refer to the relevant FR notice and DoL's designated webpage on TVPRA at: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2012-09-27/pdf/2012-23402.pdf; and http://www.dol.gov/ilab/programs/ocft/tvpra.htm.

ENQUIRIES

5. For enquiries concerning this circular, please contact the undersigned at telephone number 2398 5682.

Yours faithfully,

(Miss Cindy LAU)
for Director-General of Trade and Industry

Note : While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the above information, the Department cannot guarantee this to be so and will not be held liable for any reliance placed on the same.