Importers and exporters got the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) mandatory use deadline delay they were hoping for, but U.S. Customs and Border Protection specialists say that doesn't mean that they should procrastinate in implementing the program.
Mandatory use of single window system will kick off in 2016
The deadline for mandatory filing under ACE was pushed back from Nov. 1, 2015 to Feb. 28, 2016, according to the Journal of Commerce (JOC). This is exactly what importers and exporters had been hoping for, as they believed they were being rushed to begin using the system. However, specialists with Customs say that shippers would do themselves a favor by implementing ACE by the voluntarily Nov. 1 deadline, rather than pushing filing through the system back to February.
The single window system was designed to speed up border processing through automation, consolidation and modernization. The program will allow shippers to share trade documents with the over-50 government agencies that handle them through a single, accessible portal. The system will also open up lines of communication between parties involved in border processing. Just two weeks before the deadline delay, Customs had stated that it was standing by its Nov. 1 deadline. However, with issues abounding for shippers who, they say, were simply not prepared to roll out the program so soon, the mandatory start date for filing under ACE has been pushed back.
The deadline is helpful, but shouldn't be an excuse
Sue Ross, Los Angeles Customs and trade attorney, noted that it was a good thing that the deadline was pushed back because federal agencies were not yet ready for implementation either, according to the Journal of Commerce. However, while Ross does believe that it is a positive that the implementation deadline was modified, she does not think that it is an excuse for shippers to procrastinate integration of the single window system.
Government agencies, meanwhile, will begin implementing ACE throughout 2016, with all of those involved in border processing set to be using the single window system by Dec. 16, 2016.
Though exporters and importers seem loathe to begin filing under ACE, the system will ultimately benefit the entire trade community, according to the Journal of Commerce. When border processing is faster, more efficient and completed in a single place, everyone will win. They simply need to begin using the system first.