CBP Publishes Revised Terms and Conditions for Accessing the ACE Secure Data Portal

CBP states that the revised terms and conditions published in this notice supersede and replace the terms and conditions documents previously signed and submitted to CBP by ACE Portal Account Owners. (CBP notes that the previous terms and conditions documents were not published, but were provided to ACE Portal account applicants after their acceptance into the National Customs Automation Program (NCAP) test of ACE.)

Terms and Conditions No Longer Have to be Signed/Submitted Prior to Access

Until now, CBP has required the Account Owner to sign and submit the terms and conditions document prior to accessing the ACE Portal. Instead, the revised terms and conditions (set forth in CBP's notice) will now appear in the introductory screen for the ACE Portal and any party seeking access to the ACE Portal will be required to accept them.

Any Signed/Submitted Terms and Conditions Document 'Null and Void'

CBP states that any terms and conditions document previously signed and submitted by any Account Owner is null and void, having been superseded and replaced by the terms and conditions set forth in this notice.

For those ACE Portal Accounts already on file with CBP with the proper Account Owner listed (see revision below), no further action is required by the ACE Portal Account Owner.

Revisions to Terms and Conditions Primarily Affect Account Owner

According to CBP, the principal changes to the terms and conditions for accessing the ACE Portal include:

a revised definition of "Account Owner" to permit either an individual or a legal entity to serve in this capacity;

(The former definition of account owner only referred to a person or individual. The new definition also states that if the Account chooses to designate a legal entity other than an individual as the Account Owner, the Account Owner must also designate an individual as the single point of contact for the Account.

In addition, any present ACE Portal account with a terms and conditions document already on file with CBP will not be required to change the designation of its Account Owners unless the Account would prefer to designate a new Account Owner, consistent with the new definition of Account Owner.

If the Account chooses to change its Account Owner designation, the Account will be required to sign and submit to CBP an Account Owner Designation/Authorization form.)

(CBP notes that thisnotice also amends its previously published notices to reflect CBP's new definition of "Account Owner.")

new requirements relating to providing notice to CBP when there has been a material change in the status of the Account and/or Account Owner; and

company access to historical information in the event of the transfer of control of an IR number, filer code, or SCAC.

Further Modifications to Terms and Conditions May Occur

CBP notes that as ACE expands and includes other portal account types beyond the importer, broker, and carrier ACE Portal accounts that exist today, further modifications to the terms and conditions may occur.

(Note that these terms and conditions do not affect participants in ACE who have not established Portal Accounts but instead participate via Non-portal Accounts.)

(See ITT's Online Archives or 02/02/05 news, 05020205, for BP summary of the elimination of the requirement for participation in C-TPAT to be part of the NCAP test for the ACE Portal, and expanding the universe of participants in the test and the types of ACE Portal Accounts.

See ITT's Online Archives or 10/25/05 news, 05102505, for BP summary of CBP announcement that importers, whether or not C-TPAT certified, could become ACE non-portal accounts, under certain conditions, etc.)

CBP notice (FR Pub 05/16/07) available at http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20071800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2007/pdf/E7-9350.pdf