The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) was signed into law on December 23, 2021 (Public Law 117-78) and became effective on June 21, 2022. It establishes a rebuttable presumption that any goods, wares, articles, or merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China — or by entities on the UFLPA Entity List — are made with forced labor and therefore prohibited from importation into the United States under 19 U.S.C. § 1307.
Enforcement framework:
- Administered by CBP under the direction of the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force (FLETF), chaired by DHS
- Detained shipments are issued a Notice of Detention under 19 CFR § 151.16
- Importers have 30 days to respond with documentation rebutting the presumption
- If the importer cannot rebut, the goods are excluded or seized and forfeited
To rebut the presumption, an importer must provide "clear and convincing evidence" that the goods were not produced with forced labor. The FLETF Strategy document specifies that this requires:
- Full supply chain tracing from raw material to finished good
- Due diligence consistent with the OECD Due Diligence Guidance
- Evidence the importer responded fully to all CBP requests for information
High-risk sectors identified by FLETF include cotton and apparel, polysilicon and solar modules, tomatoes and tomato products, aluminum, PVC, automotive components, electronics, and seafood.
Practical implications: Importers sourcing from China — especially in flagged sectors — must implement documented supply-chain mapping and supplier verification. Failure to do so creates exposure not only to UFLPA detentions but also to Section 1592 penalties for negligent or grossly negligent failure to exercise reasonable care over country-of-origin claims.
UFLPA enforcement has detained shipments valued in the billions of dollars since 2022 and is among CBP's highest-priority enforcement programs.