Taking no chances with what appears to be increasingly likely a federal government shutdown starting Oct. 1, the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America (NCBFAA) is leading an effort among 40 other trade associations to develop a comprehensive strategy with Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and other Partner Government Agencies (PGAs) to ensure that legitimate trade is permitted to efficiently enter and exit US ports during a shutdown.

Specifically, the trade community requests:

  1. Private Sector Communication with the CBP “War Room” — The establishment and staffing of a CBP War Room that will work with the private-sector trade community to establish a direct line of communication for the private sector to inform the War Room in real-time on issues that must be resolved in a timely fashion to keep trade moving throughout any shutdown.
  2. PGA presence in the CBP War Room — PGA staff should be fully integrated into the CBP War Room, especially those agencies with hold authority, including FDA, USDA, FWS, EPA, and CPSC, that must clear goods before they can enter the stream of commerce, along with the TSA due to its important border security responsibilities. As well, continuing to provide technical support to ensure ACE is operating normally during any potential shutdown.
  3. CBP HQ, ports, and Centers must coordinate — During prior shutdowns, the private-sector trade community experienced breakdowns in communication between CBP HQ, the local ports, and the Centers (formerly CEEs), which caused needless inefficiencies in moving trade. To prevent this from happening again, CBP should pre-plan coordination with the Centers and the local ports.
  4. CBP daily briefings with the private sector — In past lapses of government funding, CBP did an incredible service to the trade by holding daily briefings. CBP should restart this best practice, so that any issues can be swiftly identified and resolved. PGAs with hold authority should attend these daily briefings in order to ensure that all parties are working together in a coordinated manner to keep trade moving.
  5. Trade must flow both ways — The trade community emphasizes that trade must continue moving in both directions for the duration of any lapse in government funding. Export operations and related processes, including licenses, inspections, impractical to screen cargo, and the like, must be able to flow inbound as well as outbound across the borders during a shutdown.
  6. All tangential trade functions must be considered essential — All Tangential Trade Functions Must be Considered Essential — The government is urged to consider tangential trade functions when deciding which employees are exempt. Examples include the issuance of steel and aluminum licenses via the Department of Commerce, EPA inspection sites, all PGA staff who conduct document reviews or technical staff to resolve automation issues, UFLPA focused-employees who review and release detained shipments, personnel who process paper checks at the ports, personnel who conduct inspections for self-propelled used vehicle exports, and USDA certificate personnel for U.S. exports. These should be deemed essential so that trade can continue to move.

“While we remain hopeful that a government shutdown can still be avoided, the current political environment in Washington is making us take a cautious approach,” said NCBFAA President Jose D. “JD” Gonzalez. “That is why it’s imperative for us to take action with CBP and the PGAs now in order that we can work with these agencies to keep our nation’s trade moving efficiently and securely.”

NCBFAA has already developed a special Government Shutdown webpage on its NCBFAA.org website in which timely informational updates related to trade from CBP and the PGAs for customs broker, freight forwarder and NVOCC members and their customers will be available.

“NCBFAA will keep its members informed with real-time information about what they need to know in order to perform their day-to-day business activities during the shutdown,” said NCBFAA Executive Vice President Megan Montgomery. “It’s all-hands-on-deck in our association.”

Who is the NCBFAA?

Established in 1897, the NCBFAA represents more than 1,200-member companies in international trade -the nation’s leading freight forwarders, customs brokers, ocean transportation intermediaries (OTIs), NVOCCs and air cargo agents, serving more than 250,000 importers and exporters. Through its various committees, counsel and representatives, the Association maintains a close watch over legislative and regulatory issues that affect its members.

To stay informed on trade news and other important updates, stay connected with a customs broker.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has announced the latest set of updates that will be coming to the ACE reporting system over the next few months.

ACE, which stands for Automated Commercial Environment, is the platform used to report imports and exports so that the government can determine admissibility.

The deployment schedule is as follows:

Ace Portal Modernization

The third and fourth phases will transition more capabilities to the modernized ACE portal, including:

Aluminum Duty

Trade Remedy 232 for Aluminum will require a new declaration for Russian Smelt or Cast, which involves collecting five new data elements via ABI and updates to CBP internal user interfaces.

Automated Surety Interface (ASI) Seized Assets and Case Tracking System (SEACATS)

This will transition ASI-SEACATS from the Automated Commercial System (ACS) to ACE.

HTS Go-Live

The remaining HTS Admin User Interface, HTS Query and Data Conversion will be migrated.

Implement Mass Liquidation Functionality for Drawback Entry Type 47

ACE functionality will be expanded to allow for the mass liquidation of drawback entries/claims (entry type 47).

UFLPA Detentions Process Related to Forced Labor

This will create an automated process for Admissibility Reviews and Exception Requests. This will include automating the completion and issuance of the CBP 6051D and Attachment 2B. A public site for the trade to upload documentation and submit for CBP review. This new enhancement will allow CBP to track, review, and determine the final disposition from this site.

ACE Currency Exchange Rates

The ACS Currency Exchange Rates program will be implemented in ACE, giving CBP and Trade stakeholders clear concise daily exchange rates (“multipliers’) to use in converting invoice values (currency) to US Dollar value for entry summary and other purposes.

Ocean House Bill of Lading (OHBOL) Release

This enhancement will implement functionality within ACE to release ocean cargo at the lowest shipment level. A new User Interface will be provided for Container Freight Station (CFS) operators where they can view information as released at the lowest shipment level. The CFS UI will not have EDI impacts.

Enhancements to ACE Truck Manifest – Phase 4: Class of Admission

This enhancement will allow ACE Truck Manifest to infer Class of Admission (COA) based on travel documents that the Primary Inspection Process (PIP) returns for all crew members and passengers present in the conveyance at crossing. When the COA cannot be inferred by the travel document returned by PIP, the enhancement will also allow the officer examining the documents at the border to manually select the COA or create a referral.

Enhancements to ACE Truck Manifest – Phase 4: Non-Intrusive Inspection (NII) Integration Enhancements

This enhancement includes the development and integration of additional non-intrusive inspection (NII) capabilities including Artificial Intelligence (AI)/Machine Learning (ML) models for ACE Truck Manifest modernization.

Immediate Delivery

The Immediate Delivery (ID) enhancement will allow filers to transmit an ID request on an entry and the data would populate in ACE Cargo Release and Entry Summary, in line with 19 CFR 141,48(c).

Entry Summary Query Updates

This enhancement will incorporate data elements from Collections and move the query from Legacy ACE to New ACE.

Collections – Release 7*

This functionality will automate the Budget Clearing Account (BCA) process, enabling improved reconciliation of open receivables and reducing the time required to clear the BCA for CBP personnel. • This enhancement will also integrate the port collections process into ACE Collections and will enable the entry lifecycle to be contained in one system.

United States – Mexico – Canada Agreement (USMCA) – Retail Sales Indicator

This work creates a new indicator that filers will use to indicate if they are submitting a substitution claim, or a direct identification claim for Drawback provisions 56 and 70.

Broker Fee Automation

New capabilities: Broker License Application with interface to ACE, Broker Permit Application with interface to ACE, and Broker Annual Permit User Fee with interface to ACE. Deployment will commence once integration of Collections (Release 7) is complete.

To stay informed on trade news and other important updates, stay connected with a customs broker.

The new requirements for customs brokers with power of attorney (POA) under 19 CFR 111.36(c)(3) established by the Modernization of the Customs Broker Regulations Final Rule (87 FR 63267) are now in effect.

A Power of Attorney agreement gives another party (either an individual or a company) the authority to make decisions on your behalf. The most common situations in which the average American will encounter a PoA agreement will likely be medical or legal. A Power of Attorney is also required if you want to work with a customs broker like Clearit.

Under the new regulations, a customs broker must execute a POA directly with an importer of record or drawback claimant (client) and not through a freight forwarder or other third party to transact customs business on behalf of the client.

According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the term “directly” means the client must execute and sign the POA in direct communication with the broker and cannot have an agent or third party sign or negotiate the POA in their stead.

However, the client may have an agent, or third party assist in executing the POA. For example, the client may have an agent provide translation services, provide counsel in reviewing the terms of a POA, or provide courier services to relay a written POA.

For additional guidance on the broker POA requirement you can review CBP’s Customs Broker Frequently Asked Questions. For more information on the regulations, visit CBP’s Customs Broker Modernization Regulations dedicated webpage. Read the full text of the Modernization of the Customs Broker Regulations Final Rule and the Elimination of Customs Broker District Permit Fee Final Rule.

Read more: Customs Compliance: Power of Attorney

To stay informed on trade news and other important updates, stay connected with a customs broker.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has published a downloadable user manual for its Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (CTPAT) web portal.

The manual explains how to navigate through the portal and complete your CTPAT application. It will also enable partners in the program to take advantage of CTPAT and foreign AEO cargo facilitation benefits.

The CTPAT web portal is constantly changing to meet the demands of the trade environment and technology and new trends in supply chain security. It has expanded to include elements of Trade Compliance and the changes required to update the MSC.

Through CTPAT program, CBP works with the trade community to strengthen international supply chains and improve U.S. border security. CTPAT is a voluntary public-private sector partnership program between CBP and supply chain stakeholders including importers, carriers, consolidators, licensed customs brokers, and manufacturers. To date, more than 11,400 partners have been accepted into the program, accounting for 52% (by value) of cargo imported into the U.S.

When an entity joins CTPAT, an agreement is made to work with CBP to protect the supply chain, identify security gaps, and implement specific security measures and best practices. Applicants must address a broad range

of security topics and present security profiles that list action plans to align security throughout the supply chain.CTPAT members are considered to be of low risk, and are therefore less likely to be examined at a U.S. port of entry.

Other benefits of being a CTPAT partner include:

To keep informed on important industry updates, stay connected with a customs broker.

The Government of Canada has extended its COVID-19-related land border crossing restrictions, which affect truckers transporting freight across the US-Canada land border, until at least Sept. 30.

To cross at a land border, travellers will still have to show proof of vaccine. Without proof of vaccine, they will be required to quarantine for up to 14 days.

“As we move into the next phase of our COVID-19 response, it is important to remember that the pandemic is not over,” said Minister of Health Jean-Yves Duclos. “We must continue to do all that we can to keep ourselves and others safe from the virus. It is also important for individuals to remain up to date with the recommended vaccinations to ensure they are adequately protected against infection, transmission, and severe complications. As we have said all along, Canada’s border measures will remain flexible and adaptable, guided by science and prudence.”

In June, the Canadian government paused its mandatory vaccination requirements for federally-regulated air, rail, and marine transportation sectors. But for land travellers, and those transporting goods by land, the existing border requirements will remain in effect for now.

To qualify as a fully-vaccinated traveller, you must:

You can read the complete list of requirements here.

Pre-entry COVID testing is not required, however travellers may be randomly selected for testing on arrival, and testing remains “an important tool in Canada’s detection and surveillance of COVID-19” that has been essential in helping slow the spread of the virus, the Government of Canada stated in a press release.

“The health and safety of Canadians is our government’s top priority,” said Marco E. L. Mendicino, Minister of Public Safety. “At the same time, we will continue to add resources to ensure that travel and trade can keep moving.”

The announcement is certainly challenging for a supply chain that’s already under severe strain. But with the country experiencing another COVID-19 wave due to the spread of the new BA.5 variant, it’s just as important as ever to follow public health measures and adapt as best we can.

To stay informed on border crossing requirements and other important updates, stay connected with a customs broker.