A planned validation for Automated Commercial System cargo release entries that are subject to quota will not allow CBP to move up implementation of several quota-related entry types it recently delayed until Oct. 31, said a CBP spokeswoman. Instead, the validation, which was originally set for implementation on June 27 before CBP postponed deployment so it could focus on continuing air manifest issues (see 1506290018), will serve to “reject entries that are subject to Quota and filed with an incorrect entry type,” said the spokeswoman.

International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for June 22-26 in case they were missed.

CBP should require use of the Automated Commercial Environment only for capabilities that have been in production for at least six months, said Trade Support Network industry members in a June 26 letter to CBP Commissioner Gil Kerlikowske and other government officials involved in the ACE transition. The TSN group, the Trade Leadership Council (TLC), said there's too much at risk to proceed with the current ACE and International Trade Data System transition plan. While the council didn't specifically ask for a delay to the current deadline, such a revision would mark a major shift to CBP's plans.

CBP postponed the planned June 27 update for the Automated Commercial Environment "to provide a more stable environment for the air industry," said CBP in a June 26 CSMS message (here). "CBP will continue to work with the air industry to assess system performance and communicate a new date for" the deployment, the agency said. CBP did update ACE to allow for an "exporter" account type, as planned (see 1506260007), said CBP. The agency continues to work to fix problems with ACE Air Manifest (see 1506230030).

As part of the June 27 Automated Commercial Environment deployment, CBP will add a new account type within the ACE Secure Data Portal, the agency said (here). CBP will also add "a new system validation will automatically reject ACE Cargo Release entries that are subject to quota and entered" without the correct entry type, it said. "Until November 1, 2015, entries that are subject to quota must be filed in the Automated Commercial System (ACS)." The validation feature is hoped to allow for earlier than planned industry testing of 11 entry types ahead of the Nov. 1 requirement for entry summary and cargo release filing in ACE, a CBP official recently said (see 1506030054).

CBP posted a set of presentations used by government agencies at the 2015 Trade Support Network conference held June 23-25:

The CBP Los Angeles Field Office again extended interim work-around procedures in response to continued problems with Automated Commercial Environment for air manifests. Through June 31, it will allow for carriers and Container Freight Station operators to accept Form 3461 signed by the broker "without fear of penalty for entries that have generated a paperless release (to include split shipments)," the field office said in a notice. CBP said some carriers are unable to see release notifications (1C), which have posed a problem since the agency transitioned from the Air Automated Manifest System into the ACE on June 7 (see 1506110007). Carriers and CFS operators may also accept screen printouts of ACE cargo entry releases submitted by the broker, said CBP. "The printout should have at a minimum the shipment ID and quantity being released as well as clear identification of who presented the release information," it said. The carriers and CFS operators may also accept signed Form 7512 when the 1C or 1D aren't posted, it said.

CBP made some changes in its draft Automated Commercial Environment business process document (here), updating some sections and adding a new section about cargo that is deemed released. CBP posted a draft last month and requested industry comments (see 1505180010). The processes document is expected to function as the "cornerstone" for both the trade and port personnel, an agency official recently said (see 1504270018).

A set of recent fixes for the air manifest processing in the Automated Commercial Environment has resolved a number of problems recently reported by users, said a CBP spokeswoman in an email. "The fixes put in place through June 20th have eliminated the known performance issues," she said. "CBP will continue to monitor system performance to validate that all fixes and issues have been identified and rectified." The agency recently provided an update to industry members (see 1506220016).

CBP will begin use of a "revised Downtime Authorization form" at the Port of New York to avoid some of the problems related to the use of the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) for air manifests, said the CBP's New York office in a June 19 informational pipeline. The form "authorizes both transfers and releases in a single authorization, thereby eliminating a duplication in processing," said the agency. The ACE manifest system "continues to experience some performance issues in transmitting messages to the trade community," though it is "steadily improving," said CBP. The New York work-around differs from the revised procedures in Los Angeles (see 1506190022).