CBP still has not seen any major or minor issues with the move from the rail and sea legacy manifest filing systems to Automated Commercial Environment (ACE): e-Manifest (M1), said Brenda Smith, head of the ACE business office in an interview. Since the transition on Sept. 28, a day earlier than the official cutoff date, all automated manifest system (AMS) filers are using the M1 system for automated filing. The move to M1 marks a significant milestone for ACE, which has proven to be a difficult and expensive process for CBP.
CBP posted a set of frequently asked questions (FAQ) about the use of in-bond within e-Manifest: Rail & Sea (M1). As of Oct. 1, M1 is the only electronic means to provide CBP advance ocean and rail manifest information.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related issues:
CBP said it successfully transferred all ocean carriers, rail carriers and Automated Broker Interface software developers to the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) e-Manifest: Rail and Sea. ACE now operates as the only CBP-approved electronic data interchange through which rail and sea manifests may be transmitted to the agency. CBP said the transition was completed a full 24 hours prior to the Sept. 29 deadline.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Sept. 24-28 in case they were missed.
CBP provided descriptions of the various reports included in each of the ACE public folders. The descriptions were included in CBP's September ACE Trade Account Owner update. CBP said entry summary filing in ACE has grown from 1% to nearly 11% during fiscal year 2012.
CBP issued a reminder advising that any carriers who have their type 2 carrier bond obligated for ACE Truck generated in-bonds, to not use the new ACE “In-bond Authorization” function at this time.
CBP released its Trade Newsletter for the 2012 fourth quarter. The newsletter provides an update on several of the agency's efforts, including AD/CVD enforcement, new tools for finding counterfeit merchandise and recent work with the Border Interagency Executive Council
CBP's ACEopedia for September provides an update to progress in ACE to date. The latest version added five new agencies planned for ACE interoperability, aimed at allowing a "single window" process that would ease cargo importation and release.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection posted an Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) user guide on e-Manifest: Trucks. It provides an introduction to this capability in ACE and information on how to store account information in the ACE, how to add drivers to an account, submitting an e-Manifest, in-bond shipment information, etc.