The Energy Department is reopening until June 15 the period for comments on its proposal to require filing of “certifications of admissibility” in ACE at time of entry for products subject to energy efficiency standards, in a notice (here). The agency is seeking input on “how to minimize the burden of data collection to importers of covered products or equipment subject to an applicable energy conservation standard, while at the same time providing DOE with traceability information sufficient to determine whether a covered import is one that the DOE has previously identified as noncompliant” and give CBP a description of the import so the border agency can refuse admission, said the notice.

CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:

CBP’s June 15 mandatory use date for filing electronic entries and entry summaries in ACE is tight, leaving little time to implement the latest FDA changes to its ACE programming and smooth out remaining issues, said customs brokers and software developers shortly after the agency announced the deadline. As detailed in a Federal Register notice (here), CBP will as of June 15 require filing in ACE of FDA entries and entry summaries under entry types 01, 03, 06, 11, 23, 51 and 52, the Automated Commercial System “will no longer be a CBP-authorized [electronic system] for purposes of processing these electronic filings,” said the agency. Though CBP said it will monitor implementation, CBP should ease in enforcement to give the trade community time to adjust, said one broker.

As of June 15, ACE will be the only authorized system for filing electronic entries and entry summaries for certain Food and Drug Administration entries and entry summaries under certain entry types, said CBP in a Federal Register notice scheduled for publication on Monday (here). On June 15, for entry types 01, 03, 06, 11, 23, 51 and 52, the Automated Commercial System “will no longer be a CBP-authorized [electronic system] for purposes of processing these electronic filings,” it said. “CBP will continue to monitor the FDA filing rates in ACE. Should there be a need to avoid a substantial adverse impact on trade, CBP will reassess the transition completion date for FDA filings,” said CBP. The Customs Commercial Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) recently joined industry calls for CBP to announce its ACE deadline for FDA entries, citing the trade industry’s need to know the date for development and training purposes.

CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:

CBP has implemented changes to work around communication issues between ACE truck manifest and ACE Cargo release, giving itself the ability to manually release truck entries in order to “facilitate the movement of legitimate cargo,” said the agency in a CSMS message (here). However, in order for the option to be available, the filer must include the port code on the entry, said CBP. “While we understand that it is not mandatory to file entries with a port code, doing so will assist in the manual release of entries,” it said.

Filers do not have to get a signature from CBP or the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) prior to submitting ATF Form 6A (Release and Receipt of Imported Firearms, Ammunition and Implements of War), said CBP in a CSMS message (here). Clarifying an earlier message on transition procedures for partner government agency submissions in ACE (see 1604220037), CBP said the ATF Form 6 (“Application and Permit for Importation of Firearms, Ammunition and Implements of War”) accompanying the submission of Form 6A through the Document Imaging System (DIS) serves as proof of ATF approval for importation. Form 6 and 6A should be submitted simultaneously with entry, and both forms are required for release, said CBP. Filers are still required to provide a copy of the Form 6A, with Sections I and III completed, to ATF within 15 days of the release. The earlier message clarified procedures for DIS submission of PGA-required documents prior to deployment of an agency’s PGA message set.

International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for May 2-6 in case they were missed.

CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:

Some Document Image System (DIS) submissions must go to docs@cbp.dhs.gov email address and not CEE-DOCUMENT-SUBMISSION@cbp.dhs.gov and SimplfiedEntryDocs@cbp.dhs.gov as of May 28, said CBP in a CSMS message (here). Email formatting for DIS submissions must follow directions from the DIS Implementation Guide (here). "There are a few exceptions," said CBP. "The process and procedures will remain the same for those submitting to the following email boxes: ACE_STB, ISF_BOND, and EXPORT_MANIFEST." CBP will respond to emails to the wrong address or with improper formatting with an error message, it said.