CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
CBP Los Angeles released updated guidance on filing formal entries for cargo carried by passengers by hand in light of new ACE cargo release processes. Filers are “strongly urged” to fill out a “Passenger Hand-Carry Release for ACE Entry" sheet with information on the passenger, customs broker, flight and merchandise, pre-file it in ACE via the Document Image System along with a copy of the passenger’s passport and any pertinent entry documents, CBP L.A. said. After reviewing the entry in ACE cargo release, the CBP officer will sign and stamp the sheet and fax it to the terminal, with a “Public Note” transmitted via ACE to the filer serving as a release message. “If the passenger arrives and an entry cannot be located, the officer at the terminal will contact CBP Cargo Operations to inquire about the formal entry prior to post-entering the shipment,” CBP L.A. said. On Saturdays, Sundays and after hours on Monday through Friday, filers will be required to contact the Cargo Counter or Manifest Desk to notify CBP about the hand-carried entry, it said.
Department of Homeland Security Deputy Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas will leave DHS to join WilmerHale, the law firm said in an Oct. 5 news release (here). Mayorkas has been involved in various efforts at CBP, including the transition to ACE (see 1604190014), said a fact sheet on his accomplishments while at DHS (here). Under Secretary for Management Russ Deyo will serve as Acting Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security beginning Oct. 29, said DHS (here).
With the major components of ACE nearing completion, the next focus at CBP will be on how best to use its new data tools included in the system, said Deborah Augustin, executive director of CBP's ACE Business Office, while speaking at the U.S. Air Cargo Industry Affairs Summit Oct. 4. CBP will seek to figure out how "to better leverage the data and information that we're using and that we're gaining from the system to facilitate our processes, promote more effective risk management, and keep moving towards the original goal and intent of the single window initiative," she said. The previous reliance on paper made it difficult for CBP to create a "baseline" for "time to release," but ACE will allow the agency to measure that data and figure out where future process improvements may be needed, Augustin said.
Coming proposed regulations for the Air Cargo Advance Screening (ACAS) program won't differ significantly from the ongoing ACAS pilot, CBP Commissioner Gil Kerlikowske said while speaking at the U.S. Air Cargo Industry Affairs Summit on Oct. 4. While there's been progress in finalizing the regulations, Kerlikowske declined to give a time frame for when the rules might be released. ACAS continues to operate as a pilot program as a result of several extensions (see 1607210017).
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Sept. 26-30 in case they were missed.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service will allow for several "interim" measures for filing electronic Lacey Act information in ACE for goods leaving Foreign Trade Zones, the agency said in a letter to the National Association of Foreign-Trade Zones. The interim measures are necessary because the electronic CBP Form 214 (e214) system, used to provide data for Partner Government Agencies on goods admitted into an FTZ, won't be "fully integrated for PGA data until 2017," APHIS Administrator Kevin Shea said in a Sept. 7 letter to the NAFTZ. Entry/entry summaries for entry type 06 were required to be filed in ACE as of May 28, but the requirement won't be enforced until after Nov. 28 (see 1608190035).
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
CBP officially revised its mandatory-use date for several post-release functions in ACE, the agency said in a notice (here). "The effective date is delayed until further notice" and CBP will publish a later notice establishing a new effective date, it said. The agency recently said it is aiming to require ACE for drawback, reconciliation, duty deferral, statements and liquidation in January next year (see 1609280072). "CBP has determined that industry partners need additional time to prepare for the transition to electronic post-release capabilities in ACE," CBP said.