Customs Adding Up 10+2

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

Penalties won’t start for months, but the agency isn’t waiting to notify violators

For importers still in denial about the Importer Security Filing rule, Customs and Border Protection has a message: “We’re not delaying enforcement. What you submit or don’t submit is going to be held against you,” said Richard DiNucci, director of the Secure Freight Initiative.

Customs began enforcing the rule – known as 10+2 because of the 10 security data elements the agency now requires from importers and two from carriers 24 hours before a U.S.-bound container is loaded aboard a ship – on January 26, but because the agency is still two or three months from imposing penalties, some traders don’t believe it’s happening, DiNucci said.

True, Customs won’t be assessing liquidated damages – fines of $5,000 per violation, before mitigation – until the second or third quarter. But it’s tallying ISF violations to build its case for taking tougher measures.

“We review the data. If you’re consistently missing a data element, you will get a notice from us that the data isn’t included or it is inaccurate. Or if you’re consistently late, we’ll tell you to clean it up,” DiNucci said. Read more here.