CBP Expected to Issue Further Notice Shortly on ACE Delay

CBP is expected to provide additional information soon about the delay to the deployment of post-release capabilities in ACE (see 1706270049), Stuart Schmidt, compliance manager at UPS Supply Chain Solutions, said during a June 27 webinar. "We do not know the new date yet," Schmidt said. "My understanding is that there will be a Federal Register notice that will be published hopefully Friday announcing more information about this." Stuart said the delay is the result of some problems with "false positives" found while testing. "They elected to delay the deployment rather than deploy and install some quick fixes," he said. "So they felt that was the right thing to do and I think I agree with that decision." CBP didn't comment.

The Federal Communications Commission is expected to make its waiver of Form 740 requirements for importing radio frequency devices permanent in the coming months, Schmidt said. The FCC recently again extended a suspension of the requirements to Sept. 30 (see 1706020044). "They feel that within 30 days, or the next 60 days, we will see the Federal Register notice and the expectation is that they will make this moratorium permanent, meaning that we will no longer have to submit to the FCC in perpetuity," he said. "But that does not mean that the goods don't need to meet the FCC rules and regulations. They certainly do. There's just no reporting at the time of entry." The FCC issued a proposed rulemaking in 2015 to end the Form 740 requirement (see 1508110024). The FCC didn't comment.

Schmidt also discussed partner government agencies (PGA) for which ACE and International Trade Data System integration remains incomplete. After the Fish and Wildlife Service suspended its ACE import and export pilots earlier this year following complaints from the trade (see 1701190011), that agency is "retooling" the implementation guide with the help of some working groups to "achieve their mission without such onerous requirements," he said. Schmidt's "suspicion is that we will not see that now until early in 2018," he said.

The Office of Marine Conservation (OMC), which only regulates shrimp, "is still working with the trade" on how to put in place traceability requirements for the PGA Message Set without overly burdening filers, he said. While National Marine Fisheries Service data is already required in ACE, there's a new program that also includes traceability requirements (see 1612080014), he said. The information can be "very complex" and the NMFS is working to "try and come to a better way of reporting this information in keeping the data set to a manageable number of data elements."

There also are some new data field requirements coming from the Food and Drug Administration, which also already requires filing through ACE, Schmidt said. One is the result of the Foreign Supplier Verification Program (see 1705100028) and another involves stand-alone light-emitting diode imports (see 1705310030). For the LEDs, "we are still trying to clarify what actually FDA wants to see here," Schmidt said. Also still missing from ACE are the electronic Form 214, which CBP plans to deploy in August (see 1706120054), and house bill of lading release. A recording of the UPS webinar is available (here) and the presentation is (here).