USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) reminds importers, brokers, and filers that, as of Jan. 25, 2021, they will have to submit an APHIS Core Message Set in the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) when they file entry for thousands of affected APHIS-regulated plants and animal products. This will require a significant amount of additional programming and information from importers.
Anyone who imports these products should be well aware of this change that went into effect on January 25, 2021. Here is a questionnaire that we have been sending to our customers that they should use to determine if their product will require additional reporting. The NCBFAA has put out a wealth of information with links to help brokers navigate the new environment.
This will require a significant amount of additional information to be provided by importers, as well as during our process filing the entry as the Customs broker. Importers will need to know their merchandise details, and if they must provide licenses, permits, certificates, or other forms of product verification to the USDA/APHIS. We can only submit the information provided by importers and cannot provide it on their behalf.
As has been stated in previous alerts from the ACE / APHIS, the details of the product origin, scientific names, and processes done to their plant or animal-based products will need to be confirmed on the import documentation for appropriate filing with the U.S. Government authorities.
Please start reviewing your product information now to see if they will be subject to this additional government scrutiny. If you need assistance, updates, information or guidance, your Coppersmith representative is ready and waiting to work with you to ensure you remain in compliance.
UPDATE:
If you look over the information that we put out in our January blog you will know that, while the “soft implementation” started on January 25th, full enforcement will start on March 15, 2021.
Due to these additional requirements, Coppersmith will need to implement a fee structure to address the added programming along with the additional time needed to file the information into APHIS. We will follow up with customers affected by these new requirements to determine the amount of these new fees, but we need their support in providing us more detailed information about their Animal and Plant-based products to fulfill these requirements.
