New Zealand security program, C-TPAT reach parity

New Zealand security program, C-TPAT reach parity    U.S. and New Zealand officials have agreed to expand cooperation between their respective trusted shipper security programs and initiate other steps to enhance trade and security.
   Customs and Border Protection stated on its Web site that two weeks ago it formally granted Tier 2 status to New Zealand's Secure Export Scheme, meaning exporters there have begun to realize a reduction in time-consuming container inspections.
   The Secure Export Scheme (SES) is New Zealand's equivalent of the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism. Membership in the voluntary program allows U.S. importers that implement an approved plan for maintaining strong controls throughout their supply chain to receive fewer inspections and first-in-line treatment if a container must be X-rayed or physically searched. It also allows CBP to conduct stratified exams so that other ocean containers in a consolidated shipment can be released for pickup when only one of the boxes is the subject of a compliance exam and it makes members eligible for other CBP programs that often require C-TPAT participation.

Signing agreements to advance trade are (from left) Acting CBP Assistant Commissioner for International Affairs Charles Stallworth; CBP Commissioner Alan Bersin; New Zealand Ambassador to the U.S. Mike Moore; New Zealand Customs Service Attache Roger Smith.

   CBP specialists target a piece of a company's overseas supply chain for review and make on-site visits of foreign suppliers and transportation providers to verify that they follow procedures similar to those listed in the importer's security plan.
   In 2007, New Zealand became the first country to finalize a mutual recognition agreement with CBP. The arrangement shows that U.S. officials have confidence the other foreign customs service uses similar methods for verifying that companies have strong shipment security in place and can accept reports created by its personnel.
   There are 123 certified manufacturers in the SES, 71 of which 'are recognized in CBP's targeting system as being low risk commensurate with the Tier 2 status afforded C-TPAT import partners,' Bradd Skinner, the head of CBP's industry partnership programs, told American Shipper.
   Companies that belong to SES will be 3.5 times less likely to be examined for security purposes by CBP, New Zealand Customs said via e-mail. That is equivalent to the treatment given shipments from Tier 2 U.S. importers.
   CBP has significantly increased inbound cargo inspections, especially at the land borders, since 2002, but exam levels have stayed relatively flat for C-TPAT members during that period.
   Companies achieve Tier 1 status by applying for the C-TPAT program, conducting a security self-assessment and submitting their security plan. They don't receive many tangible benefits (inspections are only about two times less than normal) until after CBP verification teams confirm that they have adopted tighter security measures and any recommendations have been implemented.
   The highest level of program benefits are awarded to members that exceed the minimum-security criteria, especially as it relates to the level of risk associated with a particular company's imports. There are 326 Tier 3 importers in C-TPAT and they are seven times less likely to have cargo examined than non-C-TPAT members, according to CBP.
   The border agency also has agreements in place for reciprocal treatment of trusted shippers with Canada, Jordan, Japan and Korea. U.S. Customs, however, is much further along with Canada and New Zealand with regard to coordinating how to share audit information, developing a common information technology platform and implementing procedures for expediting clearance for their exporters as it does for its own domestic importers.
   CBP had accepted 150 validations from other nations, mostly from Canada's Partners in Protection program. The figure compares to 130 such validations as of last summer, an indication the process is quite slow.
   New Zealand Customs said no other country has reached the stage that translates into reduced CBP scrutiny of containers.
   Skinner said he expects the outside validations to increase during the next year as the C-TPAT office receives more information and coordinates its activities with partner countries.
   Although granting Tier 2 status to Secure Export Scheme members has been in works for a while, the formal conclusion of that effort underscores CBP Commissioner Alan Bersin's doctrine of creating more certainty and reducing burdens for international traders.
   The eventual goal of the World Customs Organization is for individual industry partnership programs to be compatible enough that companies would only have to apply to one national authority and have their security status accepted elsewhere, but that prospect is still a long way off.
   This year is the 10th anniversary of C-TPAT. There now are more than 10,000 companies in the program.
   Bersin and Mike Moore, New Zealand's ambassador to the United States, also signed two other bilateral agreements, including a trial program for NZ Customs to test software developed in the United States to automate the risk assessment process for air passengers. CBP operates Automated Targeting Systems that apply rules to passengers and cargo shipments using sophisticated algorithms to narrow the possibility of whether they pose a threat and deserve closer examination. CBP is developing ATS-G, which appears to be a global version of the system for deployment by other customs agencies.
   New Zealand Customs said the pilot program, which will run from June to November, would help it develop its own automated targeting capability.
   The two sides also agreed to real-time exchange of information between their respective national targeting centers for passengers to better identify people who pose a risk. ' Eric Kulisch