CBP to adjust ô10+2ö filing logs, deadline intact
U.S. Customs and Border Protection is changing the benchmark for measuring the timeliness of filing advance electronic data under the new ’10+2′ rule for imports, but the compliance deadline remain the same, the agency’s program manager emphasized Thursday.
About 45 percent of Importer Security Filings (ISF) are being submitted on time, but CBP believes that figure is low because it has been measuring timeliness against the time the first bill of lading is filed by the carrier under the 24-hour advance manifest rule. Many bills of lading are filed up to three days prior to vessel lading, which makes it difficult for importers to compile and file the necessary cargo details without demerit. Under the current system, the filing could be on time but appear late to CBP using the manifest as a back check.
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| DiNucci |
Richard DiNucci, director of the Secure Freight Initiative, said CBP wants to make sure the electronic documentation is not labeled late if a filer submitted it before the deadline — 24 hours prior to vessel lading — but the ocean carrier filed its automated manifest early.
Measuring the receipt of the ISF filing against the vessel departure time is one option CBP is now considering to make sure importers are not treated unfairly when they are filing in good faith, he said in an interview.
‘The rule is not being amended,’ DiNucci clarified.
Last week, AmericanShipper.com reported remarks made by another CBP staff person at the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America conference that suggested Customs plans to change the filing deadline for the ISF.
During the first year of the implementation CBP is taking a delayed enforcement approach and not penalizing companies for filing late.
Recalibrating the yardstick for on-time filings is CBP’s way of showing it doesn’t want to trip up companies for technical violations, DiNucci said.
‘It’s not about collecting penalties. It’s about getting the data,’ he said. – Eric Kulisch
