FCC Clarifies Plans for Form 740 Requirements

Import data for goods regulated by the Federal Communications Commission can be filed through CBP's Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) until July 1, when a waiver of FCC Form 740 requirements takes effect, the commission said Jan. 6 (here). The FCC issued the notice as a clarification of its plans to waive the requirements when the Automated Commercial System (ACS) is shut down and the use of ACE is required for electronic filing (see 1510190056), it said. "The Commission’s characterization in the Order of CBP’s ACS as the current system used for filing Form 740 information has been misinterpreted by some affected parties."

Despite those misconceptions, the FCC "did not establish any prohibitions regarding the use of the ACE," it said. The form will be required until July 1, after which "any obligation to file the Form would be suspended and the requirement waived until December 31, 2016," the FCC said. More succinctly, "until July 1, continue filing 740s as you always have" and on "July 1, stop filing 740s," said Fletcher Heald, a telecommunications law firm in a blog post (here). Intel had said the form's requirements were unclear for this year's second half (see 1510200035).