ATLANTA -- CBP is looking at options to create a “foreign entity ID” to replace the manufacturer ID it currently requires on entry documentation, said Jeff Nii, director of CBP’s interagency collaboration division, at the East Coast Trade Symposium on Dec. 6. Alongside its counterparts on the Border Interagency Executive Council (BIEC), the agency is looking into several options, including working with a non-profit standards organizations and creating the IDs on its own, prioritizing low cost in the hopes that the entity ID system garners worldwide adoption. The BIEC, which is currently finalizing its own operating procedures, will also soon begin consideration of product sub-identifiers that would provide more detail than currently allowed by the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, Nii said.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
CBP will delay its deployment of statements in ACE, as previously announced (see 1712040061), the agency said in a notice. "Generating, transmitting, and updating daily and monthly statements for all entries except reconciliation (type 09) entries" will move to ACE on Jan. 6, 2018, instead of the previously planned Dec. 9 date, it said. The agency will still deploy e214 foreign-trade zones admissions in ACE and manufacturer ID creation on Dec. 9.
CBP will begin a mobile collections and receipt (MCR) pilot program before Jan. 8, 2018, the agency said in a notice. "CBP is working towards the elimination of cash and check payments of maritime taxes and fees by allowing for electronic payments and automating the collection and receipt process," it said. The pilot will help the modernization by testing a "new optional electronic payment method, automating the calculation of fees, and introducing electronic receipts," CBP said. The pilot will involve "tonnage taxes and light money, Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) user fees, Agriculture Quarantine and Inspection (AQI) user fees, and navigation fees," it said.
ATLANTA -- On her last day working as acting Homeland Security secretary, Elaine Duke on Dec. 5 said her department is still looking for additional ACE funds, even as ACE modernization “is in the budget,” and emphasized the importance of advance data and closer monitoring of postal supply chains as opioid shipments to the U.S. have increased in recent years. During a keynote speech at the CBP East Coast Trade Symposium, Duke acknowledged that ACE needs upgrading, adding that the Department of Homeland Security’s Joint Requirements Council is looking for ways to free up more money for ACE. That council is a “component-led body” designed to “identify, prioritize and recommend investments to address cross-department capability,” according to DHS.gov. The Senate Appropriations Committee’s fiscal year 2018 Homeland Security spending bill directs $38 million to support ACE core functionality and $5 million for ACE enhancements (see 1711240027).
ATLANTA -- CBP leaders are confident that the final ACE deployments will go smoothly and won't be impeded by the amount scheduled to be added by Feb. 24, 2018, Acting CBP Commissioner Kevin McAleenan said during a Dec. 5 interview at the East Coast Trade Symposium. The decision to delay deployment of statements in ACE (see 1712040061) represents an "opportunity to test more fully," said Brenda Smith, executive assistant commissioner in the CBP Office of International Trade. The agency said on Dec. 4 it would delay the deployment of statements in ACE, from Dec. 9 to Jan. 6, 2018, due to a lack of testing for monthly statements.
ATLANTA -- CBP is waiting for NAFTA negotiations to “mature” before making a final decision on how it will handle Section 321 shipments, Acting Commissioner Kevin McAleenan said during opening remarks at the East Coast Trade Symposium on Dec. 5. Though the agency had “hoped to articulate a clear path forward” at the conference, the agency has to “let that dialogue play out with our key partners in Canada and Mexico,” he said.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration should put in place a “soft compliance” policy for its Seafood Import Monitoring Program (SIMP) filing requirements when they take effect on Jan. 1, 2018, the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America said in a letter to the agency citing concerns over trade community readiness. Despite “extensive outreach” by NOAA, customs brokers and their importer clients are having trouble getting the required data from other actors in the supply chain, and there has been insufficient time for testing in ACE, the NCBFAA said in the Dec. 1 letter.
CBP will split the ACE deployment planned for Dec. 9 into two separate deployments, said Monica Crockett, CBP director-entry summary, accounts and revenue during a Dec. 4 conference call. The agency will push its deployment of statements to Jan. 6, while still deploying e214 foreign-trade zones admissions in ACE and manufacturer ID creation on Dec. 9, she said.