New U.S.-bound cargo security rule to go into effect in January
Current security regulations required importers and shippers to file entry information with U.S. Customs fifteen days before a ship arrives at a U.S. port; new regulations will require that shippers file much more detailed information — and do so before they even load the merchandise onto their ship at the port of origin; U.S. Customs will demand that suspicious cargo, or cargo about which the information is incomplete, not be loaded
If you are in the shipping business, you may need to do some thinking over the holiday to prepare your company for new U.S. regulation which will take effect next year. DHS has formulated new requirements for importers of ocean cargo entering the United States with the purpose of enhancing port security and ensuring cargo safety. Known as the rule for Import Security Filing and Additional Requirements (10+2), it will come into effect on 25 January 2009. U.S. Customs will commence full enforcement of the new regulation on that day.
Currently, importers are required to file entry information with Customs within fifteen calendar days of the date of arrival of a shipment at a U.S. port of entry. Importers must also submit entry summary information within ten working days of the entry of the merchandise. The new regulation requires Importer Security Filing importers or their agents to provide specific cargo information to Customs at least twenty-four hours before the cargo is loaded aboard a vessel destined to the United States. Importers will be required to submit the following ten data elements:
- Seller
- Buyer
- Importer of record
- Consignee number
- Manufacturer or supplier
- Ship to Party
- Country of Origin
- Harmonized Commodity Code
- Container Stuffing Location
- Consolidator
U.S. Customs will request that the cargo for which this information has not been received in full and in time not be loaded.
