Carrier requirements memo from AgTC
From Agriculture Transportation Coalition (AgTC): AES and Carrier Documentation Requirements
As of October 1, the Census Bureau and CBP (Customs & Border Protection) will begin enforcing the new AES requirement for shippers to file export information electronically a minimum of 24 hours prior to vessel LOADING. Please note that shippers who have been approved for post-departure AES filing (formerly known as Option 4) may continue to file their Electronic Export Information (EEI) up to 10 days after vessel SAILING. Shippers that are not approved for post-departure filing and do not file before the 24-hour deadline will be subject to significant penalties.
Carriers also have a new responsibility as of October 1. They will be subject to significant penalties if a vessel sails with cargo that has not met the 24-hour filing requirement (again, post-departure filers exempted). Thus, in order to avoid penalties the carriers have been busy figuring out the best way that they can assure that they don’t accept cargo that isn’t AES-compliant. Unfortunately, what they have NOT been busy doing is worrying about how their plans will affect shippers.
As a result, little has been heard from AgTC members about the carriers’ new AES/document filing schemes – most of which are accompanied by some very hefty penalty provisions. Some particularly useful insights have been gained from the AgTC Forwarder Committee, newly established to vet this issue. the purpose of this memo is to let AgTC members know where these internal efforts stand, and invite members to participate in the effort to fashion an AgTC response and Action Plan.
AES Requirements
As a baseline, AgTC starts with two basic premises, from which it is working to make the program more manageable for shippers:
- Realistically, no significant revisions are expected to the AES program. In other words, AgTC is accepting that the requirement to file the EEI a minimum of 24 hours prior to vessel LOADING will remain in place. After all, Census is required to do this by law, and neither Census, CBP nor Congress seem amenable to major changes to the new AES program.
- It is reasonable for the carriers to request confirmation from shippers that they have filed AES (or are approved post-departure filers) within some timeframe that would assure that they (the carriers) do not load or even stage cargo that is non-compliant. Obviously, they don’t want to waste time loading and unloading cargo that is in violation of the AES requirement. And they don’t want non-compliant cargo sitting around the terminal taking up space.
Bottom Line Questions
What AgTC is trying to determine is how far in advance of vessel loading can the carriers reasonably expect the shipper to file AES with accurate information? Many of you have pointed out that it is possible to file several days in advance of loading, but that you’ll have to enter “guesstimates” and go back into AES to amend the information at a later date. AgTC does not feel that it makes sense to institute a policy that requires everyone to guesstimate, as this requires twice the work for the shipper and undermines Census’ objective of getting timely and accurate information.
Other Documentation Requirements
It is important to differentiate between what is required by Census (i.e. filing of AES/EEI a minimum of 24-hours prior to vessel LOADING) and what is required by the carrier (i.e. submission of Bill of Lading or other commercial documents). The carriers tend to link AES to all of their other documentation requirements, but we need to be clear about what is required by Census (and not likely to change) and what is required by the carrier (which AgTC can try to change).
It is also important to keep in mind that even though the carrier documentation requirements are not based on any federal laws or regulations, there is no law or regulation that prohibits them from asking for any documentation from the shipper – on any timetable. Only if it can be proven that these are an unreasonable burden on shippers can we expect to challenge such policies before the Federal Maritime Commission.
AgTC Objective
Instead of a formal challenge, the AgTC objective is to petition the carriers – perhaps with the input and informal support of both Census and the FMC – to be more reasonable in their documentation policies. For example, perhaps we should suggest a document cut-off of 48 hours prior to vessel loading, and/or elimination of the requirement for container and seal numbers. Or perhaps we should advocate for an exception for refrigerated or transloaded products.
So the current plan is to approach the carriers informally to suggest an alternate documentation policy that meets the needs of both carriers and shippers.
Next Steps
AgTC is planning a conference call – open to all FULL AgTC members – to discuss these issues and develop a proposed documentation policy that can then be taken to the carriers. Members should advise AgTC if they are interested in joining in on this call, and they will be contacted about potential dates and times.
Agriculture Transportation Coalition
202-783-3333
www.agtrans.org
From Agriculture Transportation Coalition (AgTC): AES and Carrier Documentation Requirements
As of October 1, the Census Bureau and CBP (Customs & Border Protection) will begin enforcing the new AES requirement for shippers to file export information electronically a minimum of 24 hours prior to vessel LOADING. Please note that shippers who have been approved for post-departure AES filing (formerly known as Option 4) may continue to file their Electronic Export Information (EEI) up to 10 days after vessel SAILING. Shippers that are not approved for post-departure filing and do not file before the 24-hour deadline will be subject to significant penalties.
Carriers also have a new responsibility as of October 1. They will be subject to significant penalties if a vessel sails with cargo that has not met the 24-hour filing requirement (again, post-departure filers exempted). Thus, in order to avoid penalties the carriers have been busy figuring out the best way that they can assure that they don’t accept cargo that isn’t AES-compliant. Unfortunately, what they have NOT been busy doing is worrying about how their plans will affect shippers.
As a result, little has been heard from AgTC members about the carriers’ new AES/document filing schemes – most of which are accompanied by some very hefty penalty provisions. Some particularly useful insights have been gained from the AgTC Forwarder Committee, newly established to vet this issue. the purpose of this memo is to let AgTC members know where these internal efforts stand, and invite members to participate in the effort to fashion an AgTC response and Action Plan.
AES Requirements
As a baseline, AgTC starts with two basic premises, from which it is working to make the program more manageable for shippers:
- Realistically, no significant revisions are expected to the AES program. In other words, AgTC is accepting that the requirement to file the EEI a minimum of 24 hours prior to vessel LOADING will remain in place. After all, Census is required to do this by law, and neither Census, CBP nor Congress seem amenable to major changes to the new AES program.
- It is reasonable for the carriers to request confirmation from shippers that they have filed AES (or are approved post-departure filers) within some timeframe that would assure that they (the carriers) do not load or even stage cargo that is non-compliant. Obviously, they don’t want to waste time loading and unloading cargo that is in violation of the AES requirement. And they don’t want non-compliant cargo sitting around the terminal taking up space.
Bottom Line Questions
What AgTC is trying to determine is how far in advance of vessel loading can the carriers reasonably expect the shipper to file AES with accurate information? Many of you have pointed out that it is possible to file several days in advance of loading, but that you’ll have to enter “guesstimates” and go back into AES to amend the information at a later date. AgTC does not feel that it makes sense to institute a policy that requires everyone to guesstimate, as this requires twice the work for the shipper and undermines Census’ objective of getting timely and accurate information.
Other Documentation Requirements
It is important to differentiate between what is required by Census (i.e. filing of AES/EEI a minimum of 24-hours prior to vessel LOADING) and what is required by the carrier (i.e. submission of Bill of Lading or other commercial documents). The carriers tend to link AES to all of their other documentation requirements, but we need to be clear about what is required by Census (and not likely to change) and what is required by the carrier (which AgTC can try to change).
It is also important to keep in mind that even though the carrier documentation requirements are not based on any federal laws or regulations, there is no law or regulation that prohibits them from asking for any documentation from the shipper – on any timetable. Only if it can be proven that these are an unreasonable burden on shippers can we expect to challenge such policies before the Federal Maritime Commission.
AgTC Objective
Instead of a formal challenge, the AgTC objective is to petition the carriers – perhaps with the input and informal support of both Census and the FMC – to be more reasonable in their documentation policies. For example, perhaps we should suggest a document cut-off of 48 hours prior to vessel loading, and/or elimination of the requirement for container and seal numbers. Or perhaps we should advocate for an exception for refrigerated or transloaded products.
So the current plan is to approach the carriers informally to suggest an alternate documentation policy that meets the needs of both carriers and shippers.
Next Steps
AgTC is planning a conference call – open to all FULL AgTC members – to discuss these issues and develop a proposed documentation policy that can then be taken to the carriers. Members should advise AgTC if they are interested in joining in on this call, and they will be contacted about potential dates and times.
Agriculture Transportation Coalition
202-783-3333
www.agtrans.org