CUSTOMS DEVELOPS “NO-LOAD” MESSAGE FOR AMS
CUSTOMS DEVELOPS “NO-LOAD” MESSAGE FOR AMS
U.S. Customs will develop a message in its electronic system to inform vessel operators and non-vessel-operating common carriers not to load containerized shipments that do not comply with its new advanced manifest regulation.
Effective Dec. 2, Customs requires both vessel operators and NVOs to file their cargo manifests to the agency 24 hours prior to loading on ships overseas. The agency gave the industry until Feb. 2 before it starts enforcing the regulation.
Customs will initially issue “no-load” messages to those vessel operators and NVOs that fail to provide proper cargo descriptions in their manifests. Other improper information, such as that found in the shipper and consignee fields of AMS, may trigger no-load messages in the coming weeks, Customs said.
“We’re trying to identify security risk, not trade compliance,” said John Considine, director of cargo verification for Customs’ Office of Field Operations at a meeting in Washington Jan. 23 regarding mandatory filing of advanced sea cargo manifest information.
Many vessel operators and NVOs expressed concern at the meeting about receiving timely “no-load” messages so that these containers aren’t unintentionally loaded on ships.
Charles Bartoldus, Customs’ director of border targeting and analysis, said this shouldn’t be a problem, but carriers should not start loading containers until after they have filed their manifests. He warned that operators choosing to ignore no-load messages would not be able to unload those containers in the United States.
No-load messages will be issued through AMS to vessel operators and NVOs by Customs officers at the individual destination ports for the containers.
The program will be “very closely monitored” by Customs headquarters. The Customs ports must apply the no-load policy uniformly, Bartoldus said.
Customs plans to have the no-load message ready in AMS before Feb. 2. The agency expects that vessel operators and NVOs will have to make some programming changes in their systems to create “the bells and whistles” to alert the staff of no-load containers. Until this is complete, Customs has asked vessel operators and NVOs to provide 24-hour corporate contact information to notify them about no-loads.
Customs also warned vessel operators and NVOs not to confuse “hold” messages with no-load messages. Holds are used to flag inbound containers for inspection upon arrival. Agencies, such as the Food and Drug Administration, Fish and Wildlife, and Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, can issue holds on containers through AMS.