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Frequently Asked Questions Q: What is e-Manifest?
A: e-Manifest is designed to ensure that details of imports (shipments and trips) entering the U.S. and Canada are in the hands of Customs before the goods arrive at the border, and that those details arrive in a fast, efficient manner. The U.S. system is known as the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE), while its Canadian counterpart is called Advance Commercial Information (ACI).
Q: Do I need to participate?
A: ACE e-Manifest is a mandatory program for all carriers crossing U.S. land border ports. Canada’s ACI program is scheduled to go into Informed Compliance in the Fall of 2011 and become strictly enforced by the Spring of 2012.
Q: What do I need to do?
A: If you are crossing the border at one of the mandatory ports you need to electronically submit your manifest information for all trucks, both loaded and empty, at least one hour before arrival at the border (or half an hour for FAST participants).
Q: How do I submit my e-manifests?
A: You can submit your e-manifests to Customs using the U.S. CBP ACE Portal, the Canadian CBSA ACI Portal; a software solution from a certified ACE/ACI software provider, such as eCustoms; or you can have a certified third party such as eCustoms submit your manifests for you.
Q: How do I know when I can cross the border?
A: When you submit your manifest, a confirmation is sent to you to indicate CBP/CSBA accept or reject. (If you receive a "rejected" message, you must correct your e-manifest and submit it again.) Once you have received the "accepted" message, you can cross the border one hour later, or a half-hour later for FAST carriers.
Q: What happens when I reach the border?
A: If you have submitted your e-manifest correctly and on time, when your truck approaches the primary booth, the e-manifest is automatically retrieved along with the matching pre-filed entries, in-bond requests, and other release declarations for the CBP Officer to view and process. The CBP or CBSA Officer (depending on your direction) will either release the truck at primary, or refer the truck to secondary for further processing.
Q: What solutions does eCustoms offer?
A: eCustoms offers you the option of purchasing our e-Manifest Gateway software solution to submit your own manifests, or having us submit manifests for you using our Fax 'N' Go service.
Q: How will these solutions help me complete the submission process?
A: Our solutions are designed to make the submission process as simple and straightforward as possible. Once you've set up your profile and templates in e-Manifest Gateway, you can create and submit manifests in less than two minutes! And if you choose to use Fax 'N' Go, your manifests are submitted within minutes of our receiving your fax.
Q: Isn't there a free ACE or ACI solution?
A: Yes, U.S. CBP offers a free ACE portal on its website, as does CBSA on its website. We welcome you giving them a test run, but neither was designed to support medium to large volume of shipments, and nor do they share data. In that sense we believe you will find e-Manifest Gateway or Fax 'N' Go easier to use and far more efficient.
Q: What is a SCAC Code?
A: The Standard Carrier Alpha Code (SCAC) is a unique two-to-four-letter code used to identify carriers. You must have a SCAC code to submit e-manifests. For more information visit http://www.nmfta.org/.
Q: What happens if I don't submit an e-manifest for my shipments?
A: For non-submission of e-Manifests to CBP, the truck will be turned back and the carrier fined thousands of dollars. The same will be true for Canada-bound shipments when ACI is strictly enforced in the Spring of 2012.
Q: What is a "shipment"?
A: A shipment consists of your manifest and associated bill(s) of lading.
Q: What is a "trip"?
A: A trip is the actual movement of a shipment or multiple shipments.
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