CBP RULE ACCEPTING ACE FOR EDI

CBP Issues Rule Adopting ACE as Authorized EDI System as of Nov. 1

Monday, October 12, 2015

Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg Trade Report

U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued an interim final rule amending its regulations to reflect that on Nov. 1 the Automated Commercial Environment will be a CBP-authorized Electronic Data Interchange system. The rule also formally informs the public that the Automated Commercial System is being phased out as a CBP-authorized EDI system for the processing of electronic entry and entry summary filings. In addition, the rule announces the conclusion of the ACE cargo release and the entry summary, accounts and revenue tests with regard to the entry and entry summary requirements that are now part of the CBP regulations. Comments on this rule may be submitted by Nov. 12.
CBP has been developing and testing ACE over the last several years as the successor EDI system to ACS. The agency has provided significant public outreach through events and online information to help ensure that the international trade community is fully engaged in the transition from ACS to ACE as the system authorized by the commissioner for processing entry and entry summary information. CBP has also conducted numerous tests of the filing of entries and entry summaries through ACE.
During the transition from ACS to ACE, filers have continued to use the ABI functionality to transmit entry and entry summary information both to the ACS and ACE EDI systems. In the interim final rule, CBP is announcing, consistent with 19 U.S.C. 1401, that with the conclusion of the ACE cargo release test and the entry summary, accounts and revenue test ACE on Nov. 1 will become an authorized EDI system to which entry and entry summary filings can be transmitted electronically. CBP notes, however, that reconciliation entries will continue to be filed under the procedures, terms and conditions governing reconciliation.
CBP anticipates that as of the end of Feb. 2016 ACE will be fully functional for filing entry and entry summary so that ACS will no longer be available for entry filings. The agency will complete the development of core trade processing capabilities in ACE and decommission corresponding capabilities in legacy systems by the end of 2016. At that time, ACE will provide a single window for processing trade data and become the primary system through which the international trade community will submit import and export data and the government will determine admissibility.