U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted an Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) user guide on In-Bond Authorization for rail and sea carriers. With the deployment of ACE e-Manifest: Rail and Sea (M1), rail and sea carriers will have the ability to create a list of authorized Type 2 In-Bond users in their ACE Secure Data Portal Accounts. This functionality will allow the carrier to control who can obligate their Type 2 custodial bonds (CBP Form 301). Although carriers are not required to utilize this functionality, carriers who choose to control access to their bonds have the ability to indicate the specific ports and lengths of time a carrier or broker is authorized to obligate their bond.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has newly posted the recordings and presentation slides for three webinars that are a part of a series of live trade outreach webinars that CBP hosts and subsequently makes available online. The newly posted webinars include: (1) the PIC Business Case ITDS Report on the use of e-commerce data such as global product numbers and electronic product catalogs; (2) running the new Multi-Modal Manifest Reports in ACE; and (3) Rail and Carrier ACE Portal navigation. Topics of previous webinars available for viewing include the role of the broker, account management restructuring, ACE Post Summary Corrections, simplified entry and financial processes, cargo security risks, ACE courtesy notices of liquidation, etc.
On February 29, 2012, the Justice Department announced that Australian David Levick and his company, ICM Components Inc., have been indicted for conspiring to export sensitive military and other technology from the U.S. to Iran, including components with applications in missiles, drones, torpedoes and helicopters.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has announced that it recently added a new "Trade Transformation" page under its "Trade" section on CBP.gov. The new page provides information on the Centers of Excellence and Expertise (CEE), Simplified Process, Role of the Broker, contact information for these trade transformation initiatives, and provides a link to the ACE: Modernization Information System page. The Simplified Process page provides information on the Simplified Entry (SE) and Simplified Summary initiatives. CBP has recently updated the SE Pilot Frequently Asked Questions (Technical) document on the Simplified Process page to include more information on the upcoming pilot. The new Trade Transformation page is available here.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued the following releases on commercial trade and related issues:
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted a document providing an overview of reports in the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE). The document provides information on the different types of ACE reports, when the data in the ACE reports are refreshed, and the value of the reports from the importer, broker, and carrier perspectives. It also provides information on ACE report features, such as the ability to modify or fully customize a report, the use of queries, filters, etc. Report enhancements for e-Manifest: Rail and Sea (M1) and A2.3.2 are also provided. See overview document for details.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued another CSMS message announcing that it is still accepting registrations for its March 6-8, 2012 seminar at the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America (NCBFAA) meeting in Arlington, VA that will cover programming changes for existing and new functionality scheduled to be delivered as part of the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE). The seminar will target ocean and rail software developers and ABI software developers. Presentations will focus on: (i) Changes to CAMIR and X12 message formats required for the deployment of ACE Ocean and Rail Manifest, mandatory ABI changes required for this deployment, and the decommissioning of the ACS Ocean and Rail Manifest system; and (ii) Current and future ACE deployments including ACE Entry Summary Filing, Post Summary Corrections, PGA Message Set, Document Image System, Simplified Entry/Cargo Release, and Export Manifest. Registration is available at http://www.ncbfaa.org/.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted a February 2012 update on its progress with various ACE capabilities and other projects, such as the Document Image System, PGA Message Set, e-Manifest: rail and Sea (M1), ACE Truck, Automated Export Processing etc. With this update, CBP states that a DIS pilot test will be announced in March and M1 will be operational at all direct ports by the end of March. The update has added information on Simplified Entry and Simplified Summary, but removed the dates for the ACE Cargo Release contract award and the Simplified Entry test (the test is now expected to begin in April 2012).
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued a notice advising the trade on the system requirements needed to file an entry summary with a Korea Free Trade Agreement (KORUS) claim in the Automated Commercial System (ACS). CBP states it will advise the trade in a future message when the below system changes have been completed in ACS (EI). When these changes takes effect, the trade will also be able to file such claims in the ACE AE.1 CBP states that KORUS will have an effective date of March 15, 2012.
At the February 21, 2012 COAC meeting, members approved an updated set of draft instructions for the new version of the CBP Form 301 (Customs Bond) that took effect on January 1, 2012. According to COAC, there are concerns with the new bond form, and CBP thought the quickest way to address many of the concerns was to update the instructions to include proper procedures of usage.