Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) members should be wary of use of non-compliant wood packing material (WPM), CBP said in a notice to C-TPAT members. Sea carriers should know of recent interceptions of non-compliant WPM "used in flat rack cargo carried by ocean vessels traversing the Mediterranean," it said. C-TPAT members should make sure supply chain partners use WPM that meet the International Plant Protection Convention standard, it said.
CBP posted a list of exporter eligibility requirements for participation within the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) program. The agency and industry has long discussed opening up the security program to exporters and a Advisory Committee on Commercial Operations subcommittee recently gave its approval to the eligibility requirements (here).
CBP Commissioner Gil Kerlikowske and Israel's Tax Authority Director General Moshe Asher recently finalized a mutual recognition arrangement that allows for the two countries to consider each other's trusted trader programs -- Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) in the U.S. and Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) for Israel -- for customs purposes, said CBP. As expected (see 14061619), the signing was held at the World Customs Organization conference in Brussels, Belgium. "The arrangement provides tangible and intangible benefits to C-TPAT and Israel AEO program members to include: fewer exams when shipping cargo, a faster validation process, common standards, efficiency for Customs and business, transparency between Customs administrations, business resumption, front of the line processing, and marketability," it said.The agency announced plans for a mutual recognition in 2012 (see 12121007).
CBP provided additional guidance for industry in the event of possible port disruptions related to labor contract disputes on the west coast, in a CSMS message sent July 3 (here). The update to a guidance issued on June 24 (see 14062423) includes more details on how to handle shipments of FDA-regulated products. It also includes new information for customs brokers whose shipments have been diverted to another district where the broker is unpermitted, updates procedures for cargo diverted to another west coast port, and says part of CBP’s plan is to “provide front-of-the-line benefits and priority processing to partners in the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) program.”
MINNEAPOLIS -- The U.S., Mexico and Canada are edging closer to implementing a unified portal to process import and export compliance verifications, as the U.S. strives to meet a 2016 deadline on Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) completion and Canada wraps up work on its own single window, said acting CBP deputy commissioner Kevin McAleenan during June 17 remarks at the American Association of Exporters and Importers (AAEI) annual conference. Mexico has already completed work on its single window counterpart and integration among the three countries is “almost visible on the horizon,” said McAleenan.
The role of Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) membership within international trade is growing, not declining, even as other programs emerge, said Lauren Kaufer, director of the C-TPAT program at CBP, during the American Conference Institute's Import Compliance and Enforcement forum on June 13. As an example of C-TPAT's expansion, Kaufer noted CBP is planning to finish up a mutual recognition arrangement (MRA) with Israel during a World Customs Organization event at the end of the month and is hoping to finish up another MRA with Mexico by the end of the year. CBP announced work toward a MRA with Israel in 2012 (see 12121007) and with Mexico last year (see 13012215).
CBP will begin accepting applicants to its Trusted Trader program pilot on June 16, it said in a notice announcing the pilot and outlining the benefits and responsibilities associated with participation. The long-awaited pilot combines CBP’s Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) supply chain security program with its Importer Self Assessment (ISA) import compliance program. Participating importers will have to meet increased recordkeeping and reporting requirements, but will receive benefits like reduced targeting, partial release of held shipments, and the option to be exempt from Non-Intrusive Inspections.
The coming "Trusted Trader" pilot that will combine parts of the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) and the Importer Self Assessment programs, will give the Food and Drug Administration the ability to see the C-TPAT status for importers, said Domenic Veneziano, director of FDA Import Operations. Now, the FDA is unable to look at C-TPAT status for importers because it's a voluntary program, he said. The new access within the pilot program will give FDA another tool to consider the risks associated with imports of food and other commodities, he said. Veneziano and other government officials spoke June 12 at the Import Compliance and Enforcement forum put on by the American Conference Institute.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is inspecting all high-risk containers prior to admission into U.S. commerce, but work continues to identify potentially dangerous cargo at the earliest possible time, said witnesses at a June 4 Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee hearing on U.S. port security. The sharpening of risk-based mechanisms to assess high-risk cargo, such as the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism and Importer Security Filing, is a more effective security measure than the recently delayed congressional mandate to scan 100 percent of inbound cargo across the board, added Kevin McAleenan, acting CBP deputy commissioner.
The House Appropriations Committee called on the Food and Drug Administration to work with CBP to develop a "Trusted Trader Program" designed to allow shipments from “highly compliant” importers to be released with minimal documentation. The committee made the recommendation as part of a report that accompanied fiscal year 2015 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies funding legislation on May 29 (see 14053012). The agencies have already started work towards a test of a joint Trusted Trader program that would combine Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism and Importer Self Assessment programs (see 14021819).