Notice2025-23829
Hard Empty Capsules From the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: Final Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination
Primary source
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Published
December 29, 2025
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentInternational Trade Administration
Abstract
The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) determines that countervailable subsidies are being provided to producers and exporters of hard empty capsules (capsules) from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (Vietnam). The period of investigation (POI) is January 1, 2023, through December 31, 2023.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 245 (Monday, December 29, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 245 (Monday, December 29, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60620-60623]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-23829]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[C-552-848]
Hard Empty Capsules From the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: Final
Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) determines that
countervailable subsidies are being provided to producers and exporters
of hard empty capsules (capsules) from the Socialist Republic of
Vietnam (Vietnam). The period of investigation (POI) is January 1,
2023, through December 31, 2023.
DATES: Applicable December 29, 2025.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jonathan Schueler or Joshua Nixon, AD/
CVD Operations, Office VIII, Enforcement and Compliance, International
Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-9175 or (202)
482-8361, respectively.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On March 31, 2025, Commerce published the Preliminary Determination
in the Federal Register, invited interested parties to comment on the
Preliminary Determination, and aligned this countervailing duty (CVD)
investigation with the final determination in the less-than-fair value
investigation of capsules from Vietnam, in accordance with section
705(a)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), and 19 CFR
351.210(b)(4).\1\
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\1\ See Hard Empty Capsules from the Socialist Republic of
Vietnam: Preliminary Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination
and Alignment of Final Determination with Final Antidumping Duty
Determination, 90 FR 14240 (March 31, 2025) (Preliminary
Determination), and accompanying Preliminary Decision Memorandum
(PDM).
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Due to the lapse in appropriations and Federal Government shutdown,
on
[[Page 60621]]
November 14, 2025, Commerce tolled all deadlines in administrative
proceedings by 47 days.\2\ Additionally, due to a backlog of documents
that were electronically filed via Enforcement and Compliance's
Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service
System (ACCESS) during the Federal Government shutdown, on November 24,
2025, Commerce tolled all deadlines in administrative proceedings by an
additional 21 days.\3\ Accordingly, the deadline for this final
determination is now December 18, 2025.
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\2\ See Memorandum, ``Deadlines Affected by the Shutdown of the
Federal Government,'' dated November 14, 2025.
\3\ See Memorandum, ``Tolling of all Case Deadlines,'' dated
November 24, 2025.
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For a complete description of the events that followed the
Preliminary Determination, see the Issues and Decision Memorandum.\4\
The Issues and Decision Memorandum is a public document and is on file
electronically via ACCESS. ACCESS is available to registered users at
<a href="https://access.trade.gov">https://access.trade.gov</a>. In addition, a complete version of the Issues
and Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly at <a href="https://access.trade.gov/public/FRNoticesListLayout.aspx">https://access.trade.gov/public/FRNoticesListLayout.aspx</a>.
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\4\ See Memorandum, ``Issues and Decision Memorandum for the
Final Affirmative Determination of the Countervailing Duty
Investigation of Hard Empty Capsules from the Socialist Republic of
Vietnam,'' dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this
notice (Issues and Decision Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation
The products covered by this investigation are capsules. For a
complete description of the scope of this investigation, see Appendix
I.
Scope Comments
In the Preliminary Scope Memorandum, we set aside a period of time
for parties to raise issues regarding product coverage (i.e., scope) in
scope-specific case briefs or other written comments.\5\ We received
scope case and rebuttal briefs from multiple interested parties. For a
summary of the product coverage comments and rebuttal responses
submitted to the record for this final determination, and accompanying
discussion and analysis of all comments timely received, see the Final
Scope Memorandum.\6\ In the Final Scope Memorandum, Commerce made
certain changes to the scope language as it appeared in the Initiation
Notice.\7\ See Appendix I.
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\5\ See Memorandum, ``Less-Than-Fair-Value and Countervailing
Duty Investigations of Hard Empty Capsules from Brazil, the People's
Republic of China, India, and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam:
Scope Comments Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary
Determination,'' dated March 24, 2025 (Preliminary Scope
Memorandum).
\6\ See Memorandum, ``Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations of
Hard Empty Capsules from Brazil, the People's Republic of China,
India, and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, and Countervailing
Duty Investigations from Brazil the People's Republic of China,
India, and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: Final Scope Decision
Memorandum,'' dated concurrently with this notice (Final Scope
Memorandum).
\7\ See Hard Empty Capsules from Brazil, the People's Republic
of China, India, and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: Initiation
of Countervailing Duty Investigations, 89 FR 91680 (November 20,
2024) (Initiation Notice).
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Verification
As provided in section 782(i) of the Act, in May 2025, Commerce
conducted on-site verifications of the subsidy information reported by
the Government of Vietnam, the Government of Korea, Suheung Vietnam
Co., Ltd. (Suheung Vietnam), and Cuu Long Joint Stock Company. We used
standard verification procedures, including an examination of relevant
sales and accounting records, and original source documents provided by
the respondents.\8\
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\8\ See Memoranda, ``Verification of the Questionnaire Responses
of Suheung Vietnam Co., Ltd.,'' dated August 12, 2025;
``Verification of the Questionnaire Responses of the Government of
Vietnam,'' dated August 21, 2025; ``Verification of the
Questionnaire Responses of the Government of Korea,'' dated August
20, 2025; and ``Verification of the Questionnaire Responses of Cuu
Long Joint Stock Company,'' dated August 12, 2025.
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Analysis of Subsidy Programs and Comments Received
The subsidy programs under investigation, and the issues raised in
the case and rebuttal briefs by parties in this investigation, are
discussed in the Issues and Decision Memorandum. For a list of the
issues raised by parties, and addressed in the Issues and Decision
Memorandum, see Appendix II.
Methodology
Commerce conducted this investigation in accordance with section
701 of the Act. For each of the subsidy programs found to be
countervailable, Commerce determines that there is a subsidy, i.e., a
financial contribution by an ``authority'' that gives rise to a benefit
to the recipient, and that the subsidy is specific.\9\ For a full
description of the methodology underlying our final determination, see
the Issues and Decision Memorandum.
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\9\ See sections 771(5)(B) and (D) of the Act regarding
financial contribution; section 771(5)(E) of the Act regarding
benefit; and section 771(5A) of the Act regarding specificity.
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In making this final determination, Commerce relied, in part, on
facts available, pursuant to section 776(a) of the Act.\10\ For a full
discussion of our application of facts available, see the ``Use of
Facts Otherwise Available'' section in the Issues and Decision
Memorandum.
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\10\ See section 776(a) of the Act.
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Changes Since the Preliminary Determination
Based on our findings at verification and our review and analysis
of the comments received from parties, for this final determination, we
made certain changes to the countervailable subsidy rate calculations
for Suheung Vietnam and for all other producers/exporters from the
Preliminary Determination. For a discussion of these changes, see the
Issues and Decision Memorandum.
All-Others Rate
In accordance with section 705(c)(1)(B)(i) of the Act, we
calculated an individual estimated countervailable subsidy rate for the
mandatory respondent, Suheung Vietnam. Section 705(c)(5)(A)(i) of the
Act states that, for companies not individually investigated, Commerce
will determine an all-others rate equal to the weighted-average
countervailable subsidy rates established for exporters and/or
producers individually investigated, excluding any zero and de minimis
countervailable subsidy rates, and any rates determined entirely under
section 776 of the Act. For this final determination, Suheung Vietnam's
subsidy rate is not zero, de minimis, or determined entirely under
section 776 of the Act. Consequently, we have assigned the subsidy rate
calculated for Suheung Vietnam as the rate for all other producers and/
or exporters.
Final Determination
Commerce determines that the following estimated countervailable
subsidy rates exist for the period January 1, 2023, through December
31, 2023:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subsidy rate
Company (percent ad
valorem)
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Suheung Vietnam Co., Ltd................................ 2.45
All Others.............................................. 2.45
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Disclosure
Commerce intends to disclose its calculations and analysis
performed to interested parties in this final determination within five
days of any public announcement, or if there is no public announcement,
within five days of the date of the publication of this notice in the
Federal Register, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).
[[Page 60622]]
Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation
As a result of our Preliminary Determination, and pursuant to
sections 703(d)(1)(B) and (d)(2) of the Act, we instructed U.S. Customs
and Border Protection (CBP) to collect cash deposits and suspend
liquidation of entries of subject merchandise from Vietnam that were
entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after March
31, 2025, the date of publication of the Preliminary Determination in
the Federal Register. In accordance with section 703(d) of the Act, on
July 30, 2025, we instructed CBP to discontinue the suspension of
liquidation of all entries of subject merchandise entered or withdrawn
from warehouse on or after July 29, 2025, but to continue the
suspension of liquidation of all entries of subject merchandise on or
before July 28, 2025.
If the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) issues a final
affirmative injury determination, we will issue a CVD order, reinstate
the suspension of liquidation under section 706(a) of the Act, and
require a cash deposit of estimated countervailing duties for such
entries of subject merchandise in the amounts indicated above. Pursuant
to section 705(c)(2) of the Act, if the ITC determines that material
injury, or threat of material injury, does not exist, this proceeding
will be terminated, and all estimated duties deposited or securities
posted as a result of the suspension of liquidation will be refunded or
canceled.
ITC Notification
In accordance with section 705(d) of the Act, Commerce will notify
the ITC of its final affirmative determination that countervailable
subsidies are being provided to producers and exporters of capsules
from Vietnam. As Commerce's final determination is affirmative, in
accordance with section 705(b) of the Act, the ITC will determine,
within 45 days, whether the domestic industry in the United States is
materially injured, or threatened with material injury, by reason of
imports of capsules from Vietnam. In addition, we are making available
to the ITC all non-privileged and non-proprietary information related
to this investigation. We will allow the ITC access to all privileged
and business proprietary information in our files, provided the ITC
confirms that it will not disclose such information, either publicly or
under an administrative protective order (APO), without the written
consent of the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
If the ITC determines that material injury does not exist, this
proceeding will be terminated and all cash deposits will be refunded.
If the ITC determines that such injury does exist, Commerce will issue
a CVD order directing CBP to assess, upon further instruction by
Commerce, countervailing duties on all imports of the subject
merchandise that are entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for
consumption on or after the effective date of the suspension of
liquidation, as discussed above in the ``Continuation of Suspension of
Liquidation'' section.
Administrative Protective Order
In the event that the ITC issues a final negative injury
determination, this notice will serve as the only reminder to parties
subject to an APO of their responsibility concerning the destruction of
proprietary information disclosed under APO, in accordance with 19 CFR
351.305(a)(3). Timely written notification of the return/destruction of
APO materials or conversion to judicial protective order is hereby
requested. Failure to comply with the regulations and terms of an APO
is a violation which is subject to sanction.
Notification to Interested Parties
This determination is issued and published pursuant to sections
705(d) and 777(i) of the Act, and 19 CFR 351.210(c).
Dated: December 18, 2025.
Christopher Abbott,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and Negotiations, performing the
non-exclusive functions and duties of the Assistant Secretary for
Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix I
Scope of the Investigation
The merchandise subject to the scope of this investigation is
hard empty capsules, which are comprised of two prefabricated,
hollowed cylindrical sections (cap and body). The cap and body
pieces each have one closed and rounded end and one open end, and
are constructed with different or equal diameters at their open
ends.
Hard empty capsules are unfilled cylindrical shells composed of
at least 80 percent by weight of a water soluble polymer that is
considered non-toxic and appropriate for human or animal consumption
by the United States Pharmacopeia--National Formulary (USP-NF), Food
Chemical Codex (FCC), or equivalent standards. The most common
polymer materials in HECs are gelatin derived from animal collagen
(including, but not limited to, pig, cow, or fish collagen),
hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC), and pullulan.
Hard empty capsules may also contain water and additives, such
as opacifiers, colorants, processing aids, controlled release
agents, plasticizers, and preservatives. Hard empty capsules may
also be imprinted or otherwise decorated with markings.
Hard empty capsules are covered by the scope of these
investigations regardless of polymer material, additives,
transparency, opacity, color, imprinting, or other markings.
Hard empty capsules are also covered by the scope of these
investigations regardless of their size, weight, length, diameter,
thickness, and filling capacity.
Cap and body pieces of hard empty capsules are covered by the
scope of these investigations regardless of whether they are
imported together or separately, and regardless of whether they are
imported in attached or detached form.
Hard empty capsules covered by the scope of these investigations
are those that disintegrate in water, simulated intestinal fluid,
simulated gastric fluid, or other similar water-based (i.e.,
aqueous) fluids within 2 hours under tests specified in Chapter 701
of the USP-NF, or equivalent disintegration tests.
Hard empty capsules are classifiable under subheadings
9602.00.1040 and 9602.00.5010 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of
the United States (HTSUS). In addition, hard empty capsules may be
imported under HTSUS subheading 1905.90.9090; gelatin hard empty
capsules may be imported under HTSUS subheading 3503.00.5510; HPMC
hard empty capsules may be imported under HTSUS subheading
3923.90.0080; and pullulan hard empty capsules may be imported under
HTSUS subheading 2106.90.9998. Although the HTSUS subheadings are
provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written
description of the merchandise covered by these investigations is
dispositive.
Appendix II
List of Topics Discussed in the Issues and Decision Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Changes Since the Preliminary Determination
IV. Scope of the Investigation
V. Subsidies Valuation Information
VI. Use of Facts Otherwise Available
VII. Analysis of Programs
VIII. Analysis of Comments
Comment 1: Whether Commerce Has the Legal Authority Under the
World Trade Organization (WTO) Rules and U.S. Law to Investigate
Transnational Subsidies
Comment 2: Whether the Export Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM)
Overseas Business Loan Program is Specific
Comment 3: Whether to Revise the Benchmark for the KEXIM
Overseas Business Loan Program
Comment 4: Whether the Refund for Import Duties on Raw Materials
Used to Produce Exports Program is Countervailable
Comment 5: Whether the Income Tax Preferences for Enterprises in
Special Zones Program Provides a Benefit During the Period of
Investigation (POI)
Comment 6: Whether the Exemption or Reduction From Land and
Water Rents
[[Page 60623]]
in Industrial Zones Program is Countervailable
Comment 7: Whether Commerce Should Apply Adverse Facts Available
(AFA) to Suheung Vietnam to Countervail Certain Additional Loans
Comment 8: Whether Commerce Should Treat Suheung Vietnam's
Unreported Import Duty Exemption as a Subsidy
IX. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2025-23829 Filed 12-23-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on December 29, 2025.
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