CANADA ADOPTS 24-HOUR ADVANCE CARGO NOTIFICATION RULE

CANADA ADOPTS 24-HOUR ADVANCE CARGO NOTIFICATION RULE    The Canadian government said Friday it would implement a 24-hour advance cargo notification rule for inbound maritime shipments, modeled after the U.S. rule requiring electronic manifest submissions prior to loading a container.
   The U.S. Bureau of Customs and Border Protection on Dec. 2 mandated that vessel operators and freight forwarders submit manifests 24 hours prior to loading to help the border security agency target suspicious cargo for further scrutiny.
   The Canadian rule will be implemented by April 2004 to allow transportation providers and importers to prepare for the new requirements.
   The rule provides consistent reporting requirements for U.S. and Canadian importers and continues a series of collaborative security arrangements between the two trading partners since 2001.
   The Ministry of National Revenue said it is also working to establish pre-filing timeframes for truck, rail and air cargo, a process that is already underway within U.S. Customs.