DIS Test for Importers, Brokers Began April 6, Implementation Guide Issued

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) sources said the first phase of Document Image System (DIS) testing for importers and brokers using ACE began on April 6. CBP also released a February 23 Implementation Guide for Messaging Interface between International Trade Data System Trade Partners and the CBP Document Image System (DIS) for importers and brokers. The document, numbered ITDS-DIS-IG-1.2.6, says For Official Use Only. CBP recently began the first phase of DIS testing for Importers and Brokers using ACE.

Message Formats, Communication Mechanisms, Validations, Etc.

According to the CBP document, the purpose of the implementation guide is to provide a description of the message formats, communication mechanisms, validations, and business scenarios that would assist trade partners in building their interface with the CBP DIS system. This document will specify exactly what data is to be transmitted by each party, when the data is to be transmitted, and how the data is to be transmitted. The DIS interface between CBP and Trade Partners described is intended to allow CBP to electronically gather relevant information and documents required during the cargo importation and release process and to update trade partners regarding the review status of such documents.

XML Schema Describes Image and Metadata Fields

The key goal of the interface is to replace the manual paper based transactions that occur today between trade partners and CBP/PGAs with an efficient, reliable, and cost-effective electronic mechanism. Documents that are submitted via this interface are electronic copies, i.e. images, of the paper documents submitted today. Multiple document and image formats are supported, and the images are embedded in the submitted XML message along-with distinct, usable, metadata fields that describes the document and its associations. All such image and metadata fields are described in detail in the XML schema that accompanies the implementation guide.

The XML message that constitutes the payload containing document images, and all associated metadata, remains the same irrespective of the message ‘transmission’ mechanism chosen by a trade partner. CBP supports three different transmission mechanisms by which the XML message payload can be submitted to the DIS Gateway. These are:

• Secure FTP
• Secure Web Services
• Existing EDI MQ interfaces

According to a list of revisions, the guide was updated as of Feb. 23 to include the following Food Safety and Inspection Service documents:

• Section 8.1, Documents Supported in DIS
• Section 9.2, High level document specific validation
• Section 9.3, Detailed document specific validations

(See ITT's Online Archives 12040548 for Details of the First Phase of CBP DIS Test for Importers and Brokers)