GHY Tradelines

Do you have to meet US or Canadian e Manifest Regulations? Do you struggle with using multiple tools today to comply? How would you like to meet both Canada (ACI) and US (ACE) eManifest solutions in a simple solution that can be used on any device including your phone, tablet, or laptop/PC?

GHY International has launched a new ACI and ACE eManifest Portal making eManifest requirements easier and faster for highway carriers and importers with their own trucks.

Try our industry leading eManifest Portal or Fax-to-eManifest Services today. The GHY eManifest Portal allows you to file all your ACE and ACI eManifests, get entry number texts to drivers and fax coversheets online. It connects you directly to Canada Border Service Agency and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
 

The CBSA would like to remind the trade community of the following publications that have been developed to increase awareness about the eManifest initiative:

•  Preparing for eManifest – A Checklist for Highway Carriers

• 10 Things Highway Carriers Need to Know About eManifest

•  Information for U.S. Shippers: eManifest requirements for commercial clients

Importers and carriers need to be aware that the “informed compliance” period (which was temporarily extended from November 1, 2012) draws to a close in May 2013, but leaving matters to the last minute to implement new eManifest processes into their supply chain is NOT AN OPTION as it is highly unlikely that any further extensions will be allowed for non-compliance with the highway mode eManifest requirements.
 

(Canadian Transportation & Logistics)

The Canadian Trucking Alliance has informed Canada Customs and Border Agency (CBSA) that member carriers are still experiencing difficulties and delays with the ACI eManifest program since the beginning of the informed compliance period which took effect on Nov. 1, 2012.

In a letter to the CBSA directorship, CTA’s senior VP Stephen Laskowski characterized the problems as “above and beyond what could reasonably be attributed to learning curve issues,” which are adding costs to carriers.

“It is clear from feedback and complaints from CTA members that there is a significant lack of consistency among border service officers in the level of knowledge and application of ACI policies,” wrote Laskowski, who added CTA receives reports daily from carriers across Canada who say they have been held up for hours and in cases, days, due to confusion over ACI policies at the port level.

In addition, carriers report that some border service officers are telling truck drivers that ACI isn’t being implemented until May 2013. “I’m sure you can appreciate the damage and confusion this sort of messaging does to industry support of the initiative,” says Laskowski. Read more here.
 

(Truck News)

A full contingent of Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) staff were on-hand at the Atlantic Provinces Trucking Association’s Transportation Summit…

Geoff Wood, vice-president of operations and safety, Ron Lennox, the CTA’s Ottawa-based v.p., Jennifer Fox, vice-president of Customs and Stephen Laskowski, senior vice-president, all took part in a panel discussion moderated by CTA chief David Bradley in which they shared their respective expertise on a wide variety of subjects. [...]

On ACI e-manifest

On Nov. 1, carriers will need to electronically file Customs documentation on Canada-bound loads to Canada Border Services Agency prior to their arrival at the border. Fox said most carriers are asking whether or not the implementation date will once again be pushed back?

“The answer is no,” Fox said. “That date will not move.”

Fleet managers on-hand seemed unconcerned with the impending deadline.

Read the complete article here.
 

(CBSA)

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) is providing important information to clients and trade chain partners about the eManifest initiative.

eManifest requirements for highway carriers to transmit cargo and conveyance data to the CBSA before goods arrive at the border are mandatory beginning November 1, 2012.

All eManifest data transmission methods are now available for highway carriers, including:

• the Internet-based eManifest Portal, developed by the CBSA primarily for small- to medium-sized businesses, and
• Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) options (Value Added Network, Customs Internet Gateway, Direct Connect to the CBSA and Third Party Service Providers).

Several resources are available on the CBSA Web site to help clients prepare for mandatory eManifest requirements including:

• a link to updated information in the eManifest section of the CBSA Web site such as:
• requirements for commercial clients
• implementing eManifest 
• the ACI/eManifest Highway Electronic Commerce Client Requirements Document (ECCRD)
• transmission options including access to, and information on, the eManifest Portal
• eManifest client support information
• the attached eManifest checklist for highway carriers
• the attached document entitled ‘Information for U.S. Shippers’ 
• free online eManifest presentations and Webinars, and
• downloading and/or ordering the newest publication that is now available on the CBSA Web site for reference, reproduction and/or dissemination at key distribution points: eManifest Portal – Information for highway carriers
 

(CNW)

Transportation software provider, IES, Ltd., urges the logistics industry to take action before the November 1st deadline when non-compliant truck carriers will be denied entry into Canada.

IES has been certified by the CBSA (Canada Border Services Agency) as an authorized Canadian ACI highway software provider. IES will now provide one cloud-based gateway for truck shipments traveling from the US into Canada and from Canada into the United States.

Kevin Gavin, Senior VP of Supply Chain Compliance at IES explains the urgency of the looming regulation, “CBSA has clearly stated that non-compliant highway carriers will be denied entry to Canada. With ACI on the horizon, we would strongly urge carriers and service providers to begin planning their strategies now to bypass the pitfalls associated with a last-minute rush toward compliance.”

“We are proud to announce that IES has been certified by CBSA as an authorized ACI service bureau. We have added Canadian Highway ACI to our existing cloud-based US Truck ACE technology. The combined Truck eManifest product provides one portal for shipments both to and from Canada. Highway carriers and brokers can complete and submit electronic manifests online to both CBP and CBSA to comply with the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) and Advance Commercial Information (ACI) programs respectively. Since both tools are bundled together in one interface, users can avoid the discontinuity that arises when jumping to and from multiple systems.” Read more here.
 

(CBSA)

PURPOSE:
The purpose of this communiqué is to advise clients transmitting eManifest highway carrier data to the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) of the importance of transmitting an accurate Cargo Control Number (CCN).

CBSA POLICY DECISION:
When the highway carrier and shipment arrive at the border, the driver is required to provide a lead sheet to the CBSA Border Services Officer (BSO). The lead sheet will contain:

• a bar-coded Conveyance Reference Number (CRN), or

• a bar-coded Cargo Control Number (CCN) with a handwritten CRN, or

• a handwritten CRN if an alternate bar-coded document is also being presented with the lead sheet [e.g. a Pre-Arrival Review System (PARS) document with a bar-coded PARS number].

The CBSA requires a bar-code to enable the BSO to quickly scan the number into the CBSA system and link to the data transmitted prior to arrival.

The carrier will either:

a) provide the driver with a bar-coded PARS number specific to each shipment so that the carrier knows which PARS number is being used and will also use the same number when transmitting their eManifest cargo data to the CBSA prior to arrival, or

b) the driver will contact the carrier as soon as a PARS number is used for a shipment (similar to how they notify the broker today), and the carrier will then know which number to electronically transmit to the CBSA.

It is very important that all carriers understand that when using PARS, the electronically transmitted CCN must exactly match the PARS number used on arrival at the border, inclusive of the acronym “PARS”, where applied.

For example, if the bar-coded PARS number that the driver provides at the border for a shipment is “1234PARS56789”, then the CCN that the carrier electronically transmits prior to arrival must also be “1234PARS56789”. It is not a requirement to embed the letters “PARS” into a PARS number, but if a carrier does embed letters into the PARS number the driver provides at the border, then the carrier must use the identical number in their eManifest electronic cargo transmission.

Clients are also reminded to pay particular attention when using the letters “I” and “O” and the numbers “1” and “0” in their CCNs or PARS numbers that they use the same letters/numbers when quoting the CCN in both the pre-arrival eManifest transmission and in arranging for the broker’s release documents.

Carriers will experience delays at the border when the transmitted CCN does not match the PARS number provided by the driver. Additionally, carriers who have Release Notification System (RNS) capabilities will not receive RNS messages. Inaccurate CCN transmission by carriers could result in sanctions for non-compliance.
 

(CBSA)

1. The purpose of this customs notice is to further clarify the requirement regarding the transmission of estimated date and time of loading (EDTL) on the Advance Commercial Information (ACI) Marine Supplementary Cargo Report (SO687).

2. Due to a discrepancy between Memorandum D3-5-2, Marine Cargo – Import Movements, paragraph 14 and the ACI Marine Electronic Commerce Client Document (ECCRD), the EDTL is not required on supplementary reports as stated in Customs Notice 11-019 (number 4).

3. Memorandum D3-5-2 will be updated to reflect this discrepancy.

4. For additional information about this notice or the ACI process contact:

Hélène Porter
Manager
Commercial Unit
Advance Information and Programs Division
Pre-Border Programs Directorate
Programs Branch
Canada Border Services Agency

Email: Helene.Porter@cbsa-asfc.gc.ca
Telephone: 905-308-8556
 

(CBSA)

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) today announced that the eManifest implementation timeline for highway carriers will begin on November 1, 2011. This means on November 1, 2012, highway carriers that do not comply with the requirement to electronically transmit cargo and conveyance data ahead of arrival at the border will be denied entry and will face zero-rated (non-monetary) penalties. Subsequently, on May 1, 2013, highway carriers that do not comply with the requirements will be denied entry to Canada and face monetary penalties.

“When fully implemented, eManifest will be a virtually paperless process that starts before shipments even reach the border and will improve two-way communications between trade and the CBSA,” said Cathy Munroe, Vice-President, Programs Branch. “By rigorously performing risk assessments on advance commercial information, the CBSA’s border services officers will be better able to ensure that shipments identified as being of unknown and high-risk are examined and low-risk, legitimate goods cross the border more efficiently.”

CBSA also recently made electronic data transmission requirements easier to achieve with the launch of its internet-based eManifest Portal. The eManifest Portal allows businesses to electronically submit their cargo and conveyance data to the CBSA via its Web site.

eManifest is a major Crown project that is improving the way commercial goods coming into Canada are processed while enhancing the safety and security of Canadians and international trade.
 

(CBSA)

1. The purpose of this customs notice is to clarify the requirement regarding the transmission of estimated date and time of loading (EDTL) on the Advance Commercial Information (ACI) Marine Cargo Report (SO83).

2. The EDTL is the scheduled date and time the cargo is expected to be loaded on the vessel.

3. The EDTL must be provided to the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) at least 24 hours prior to loading when the foreign port of load is in a country other than the United States and when one or both of the conditions below apply:
1) If the Supplementary Data Required Indicator is “Yes”.
2) When the cargo report has containerized goods or break-bulk goods without a ministerial exemption.

4. The EDTL must also appear on all supplementary reports.

5. The CBSA will review the cargo and supplementary reports. The carrier or freight forwarder may load the cargo at or after the EDTL if they do not receive a “Do not load” message.

6. For additional information about this notice or the ACI process contact:
Hélène Porter
Manager
Commercial Unit, Advance Information and Programs Division
Pre-Border Programs Directorate , Programs Branch
Canada Border Services Agency

Email: Helene.Porter@cbsa-asfc.gc.ca
Telephone: 905-308-8556
 

(Journal of Commerce Online – R.G.Edmonson)

Officials will receive detailed reports on goods, allowing quicker cargo release times

Customs and Border Protection officials said Monday it will launch a “simplified entry” pilot project, the first step in a move to expedite the entry of goods into the U.S. in exchange for detailed import data at least one full day in advance.

The project, the result of an agreement between the trade and Commissioner Alan Bersin, permits qualified importers to submit entry data on cargo well in advance of its arrival at U.S. ports, at which point Customs can release the goods.

Simplified entry combines elements of the Importer Security Filing rule with the entry document itself, effectively eliminating one step in the traditional process. Customs began enforcing the ISF rule, also known as 10+2, in 2010. It requires importers to report 10 data elements – and carriers two elements – about the cargo no later than 24 hours before it leaves a foreign port. Read more here.
 

The CBSA has advised that the eManifest Portal is available as of Monday, August 29th.

A message from CBSA regarding the eManifest Portal is as follows:

I take great pleasure in being able to inform you today that the eManifest Portal will be accessible from the Canada Border Services Agency’s (CBSA) Web site as of Monday, August 29, 2011.

As you know, the eManifest Portal will provide the trade community with an alternative method to the Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) options for the advance transmission of commercial information to the CBSA.

This first iteration of the eManifest Portal has been designed for highway carriers. The carrier’s authorized representative must apply for a Shared Secret to register for the eManifest Portal the first time and establish an eManifest Portal Business Account. Application instructions have been available on the Web site for several months and, to date, the CBSA has received nearly 500 applications. Now that the Portal is up and running, the CBSA will begin issuing Shared Secrets to all highway carrier applicants.

With all Manifest transmission methods (EDI and eManifest Portal) now available, the CBSA will be announcing in the coming weeks the start date of the 18-month implementation timeline for highway carriers.

I encourage you to share this information with your membership and to remind them to visit the eManifest pages of the CBSA Web site regularly, view the on-line highway carrier presentation, and subscribe to the eManifest RSS news feed to keep abreast of important updates on eManifest implementation.

We have all worked very hard to achieve this milestone in the implementation of the eManifest initiative and I thank you for your valuable input and continued support.

Bruna Rados
Director General, eManifest and Major Projects Directorate
Canada Border Services Agency

GHY offers solutions to facilitate compliance with CBSA’s eManifest requirements.

Contact us for more information about how we can help.
 
 

(CBSA)

1. This notice is for the attention of importers, customs brokers, carriers, and service providers to announce the phased-in time frames to increase the use of Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) for release purposes as the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and industry prepare for the implementation of eManifest. Currently, 93% of all release requests are transmitted electronically to the CBSA.

2. eManifest is the third phase of the Advance Commercial Information (ACI) program and will change the commercial import process to reflect the CBSA’s integrated risk management approach and to keep pace with the changing global environment. eManifest will require various members of the trade community to electronically submit trade information to the CBSA in advance of their shipment’s arrival in Canada and within prescribed time frames. The June 2009 amendments to the Customs Act provide the CBSA authority to mandate pre-arrival data.

3. In April 2008, the CBSA introduced measures to increase the use of EDI. Phase I of this initiative introduced the requirement for the electronic (EDI) transmission of Release on Minimal Documentation (RMD), including the “Pre-Arrival Release System (PARS)”, release requests for shipments containing 100 or less invoice line items unless otherwise exempt (e.g., OGD paper-permit requirements) as set out in Memorandum D17-1-4 paragraph 44.

4. Phase II of measures to increase the use of EDI will increase the total number of invoice lines from 100 to 999 (or CBSA system capacity).

5. The table below illustrates the phased-in approach for measures to increase the use of EDI:

RMD and PARS release requests must be transmitted electronically (EDI) to the CBSA effective:

• September 1, 2011 Total number of invoice lines: 250 or less
• February 1, 2012 Total number of invoice lines: 500 or less
• June 1, 2012 Total number of invoice lines: 999 (CBSA system capacity) or less

6. Effective September 1, 2011 release requests must be transmitted to the CBSA electronically (EDI) if the total number of invoice lines is 250 or less.

7. Effective February 1, 2012 release requests must be transmitted to the CBSA electronically (EDI) if the total number of invoice lines is 500 or less.

8. Effective June 1, 2012 release requests must be transmitted to the CBSA electronically (EDI) if the total number of invoice lines is 999 (CBSA system capacity) or less.

9. Certain exceptions to transmitting RMD information electronically will remain in effect until an EDI option is introduced. EDI Exceptions Lead Sheets will continue to be required at time of submission of paper release requests.

10. Exceptions to the requirement of transmitting RMD documentation using EDI are as follows:

1. Goods are subject to the requirements of another government department or agency and there is no EDI link between the CBSA and the other government department or agency;

2. The number of invoice lines contains more than 250, 500 or 999 invoice lines; depending on the phased in time lines mentioned above;

3. The release is for Shortages, Entered to Arrive, Value Included, Provisional, etc. where there is no EDI option;

4. There is more than one warehouse sub-location code per release transaction;

5. The release transaction is covered by multiple highway cargo control numbers at the border;

6. The CBSA has issued a paper Form Y50, Reject Document Control, to the importer/broker for courier/low-value shipments;

7. Goods are moved into a bonded warehouse using the release on minimum documentation option (grey wrapper);

8. Goods are to be released from a Queen’s warehouse;

9. CBSA or client system outages;

10. Regulated goods qualifying for tariff classification 9813 or 9814 (“Canadian Goods Returning”).

11. Brokers and importers are reminded paper RMD release requests will not be accepted if it does not meet one of the exceptions listed above. Should an EDI RMD release option not be used, submission of a B3, Canada Customs Coding Form “C” type is required. An EDI Exception Lead Sheet is not required for shipments released using the B3.

12. As the CBSA continues to increase the requirement for brokers/importers to transmit RMD release data electronically, carriers are encouraged to provide the necessary information to the broker/importer as early as possible. Timely submission of information to the broker/importer will assist in reducing delays experienced by highway carriers at the border frontier (e.g., “Failed PARS”).

13. For information concerning EDI and electronic transmission of release requests, refer to the ACROSS PRD or visit the Electronic Commerce Unit Web site at http://www.cbsa.gc.ca.

14. Inquiries related to this notice may be directed to the following Import Programs Unit at: release-mainlevee@cbsa.gc.ca.

(CBSA)

Version v1.4.1 of the ACI/eManifest Highway Electronic Requirements Document (ECCRD) is now available on the CBSA Web site here.

(Derwin Gowan — Telegraph-Journal)

From now on truck drivers bringing goods from the United States will spend less time clearing Canadian customs, a big American carrier hopes.

The Canada Border Services Agency’s eManifest program could cut transit times into Canada by as much as 25 per cent, Con-Way Freight of Ann Arbor, Mich., said in a news release.

“It’s allowing Customs to review our shipments that are on board electronically before we get to the border,” Melissa Matthew, Con-way Freight’s manager of customs compliance, said Monday in an interview from Ann Arbor.

“When we get there, we just present them with a bar code which they scan, and the pre-review and risk assessment has already been completed.” Read more here.

(CBSA)

1. The purpose of this Customs Notice is to advise that effective September 2010 the Commercial Unit of the Canada Border Service Agency (CBSA) is responsible for authorized break-bulk cargo exemptions under the marine Advance Commercial Information (ACI) Program.

2. Application for this authorization must be made by the marine carrier on company letterhead that should be forwarded to the Commercial Unit at the following email address: aci-ipec@cbsa-asfc.gc.ca. A risk assessment will be conducted on the marine carrier and the application in order to determine if the carrier is eligible for the exemption. The marine carrier will be advised of the final determination via email.

3. Qualifying exemptions to the 24-hour ACI rule will be applied for a period of one year (April 1st to March 31st).

4. Carrier’s with an exemption already in place with the CBSA do not need to reapply. Yearly communication with the client will take place in regards to their exemption status.

5. If, at any time during the exemption period, the information originally provided on the application changes or requires updating (e.g. ports of departure of the vessel, ports of call of the vessel, name of the vessels), the carrier must inform the Commercial Unit at this email address: aci-ipec@cbsa-asfc.gc.ca.

6. Please direct any questions concerning this notice to:
Helene Porter
Manager, Commercial Unit
Advance Information and Programs Division, Pre-Border Programs Directorate
Programs Branch, Canada Border Services Agency
E-mail: Helene.Porter@cbsa.gc.ca, telephone: 905-308-8556

(Truckinginfo.com)

As part of the implementation of its new eManifest initiative, Canada Border Services Agency is urging motor carriers to ensure they have their own unique identifier known as a carrier code.

Implementation of eManifest, a major project that will change the way commercial goods coming into Canada are processed, began on Oct. 31, but to prepare carriers and drivers currently using code 77YY, a transition period began on May 1. The agency plans to eliminate the generic itinerant highway carrier code, 77YY, as of March 31, 2011. CBSA is now assigning unique carrier codes that will become a legislated requirement for all carriers. Read more here.

(CBSA)

The following seven communiqués outline the Canada Border Services Agency’s decisions regarding various ACI/eManifest issues:

• Interim process for exceptional clearances
• Interim process for mixed (electronic/paper) shipments in the highway mode
• Interim process for in-bond shipments
• Process for single-trip in-bond movements
• Documenting proof of report for frontier release(s)
• Additions and repairs to commercial vehicles
• Administrative monetary penalties for carriers who voluntarily report non-compliance with pre-arrival data requirements

Additional program directions will be forwarded  as decisions are finalized.

If you have any questions, please contact Jason Proceviat (jason.proceviat@cbsa.gc.ca).

The CBSA has made the following revised ACI/eManifest documents available:

• eManifest Highway Electronic Commerce Client Requirements Document V1.4

• ECCRD EDI Message Maps & Code Tables, Appendix “B” of the ACI/eManifest Highway Client Document V1.4

• Summary of Changes from v1.3 to v1.4

(CBSA)

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) today announced the implementation of the first stage of the eManifest initiative, a major Crown project that will change the way commercial goods coming into Canada are processed.

As of today, electronic data interchange (EDI) systems are now available for highway carriers who can now transmit their pre-arrival cargo and conveyance data to the CBSA before arriving at the border.

“eManifest is part of the overall measures the CBSA is putting in place to enhance the safety and security of Canadians and international trade while streamlining cross-border processes,” said Cathy Munroe, Vice-President, Programs Branch. “Moving goods quickly, reliably and securely across the border is critical to Canada’s prosperity and economic competitiveness.” Read more here.