New CBP 301 Bond Form Expected Soon

The Revenue Division had proposed a new CBP Form 301 and sought comments from the trade via a Federal Register information collection notice published in August 2010. CBP stated that it was proposing to revise the form to capture the new types of bonds that have been authorized by law and regulation, and to better harmonize the form with current and future automation requirements. The current CBP Form 301 is dated May 1998 and has an expiration date of December 31, 2010.

New Bond Form Could be Posted in Few Weeks

The new CBP Form 301 could be posted on the CBP.gov “Forms” webpage within the next few weeks. The official noted that the new CBP Form 301 will reflect some of the comments that were made in response to CBP’s Federal Register notice.

Will be Grace Period for Using Old Form

There will be a grace period allowing the trade to use the old version of the CBP Form 301 for a certain period of time after the new form is posted. No final decision has been made on how long that period will be for.

Section II of Bond Form May Include Some New Bond Types

Section II of the CBP Form 301 is expected to include some of the proposed new bond types. According to the draft version of the revised Form 301, activity codes 11 -- 20 would be added for:

• Airport security bond -continuous bond only- (code 11)
• International Trade Commission (ITC) exclusion bond (code 12)
• TCD (code 13)
• Miami In-Bond Export Consolidator Bond -continuous bond only- (code 14)
• Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) -continuous bond only- (code 15)
• Importer Security Filing (ISF) (code 16)
• Marine Terminal Operator -continuous bond only- (code 17)
• Dog and Cat Act (code 18)
• Other (TBD)
• Other (TBD)

Other Changes May also be on Form

According to the draft version of the form, the following additional changes were proposed:

• Space for the broker filer code and surety reference number would be provided at the top of the form. (The form would no longer have a field for the surety agent name, see below for details.)
• The form would identify Activity Codes 2, 3a, 11, 14, 15, and 17 as “continuous bond only” activity codes. (STB only activity codes would continue to be noted.)
• Activity Code 4 would be described as “foreign trade zone,” rather than the current “foreign trade zone operator.”
• The “complete name” of all trade names or unincorporated divisions that will be permitted to obligate the bond would need to be listed.
• The physical address (as opposed to just the address) of the principal would be required. In addition, instead of providing for a second “principal”, a second entity would be called a “co-principal”. The physical address of the co-principal and surety would also be required.
• The surety section of the form would only provide for a single surety and single agent, rather than two of each. The surety agent name would no longer be required, but the agent ID number would remain as a required data element.
• Instead of requiring the seals of the principal and surety to be imprinted on the form, the form would have a check box to indicate that these entities have a seal in accordance with regulations.

(See ITT’s Online Archives or 08/19/10 news, 10081919, for initial BP summary of CBP seeking comments on their proposed revisions to the CBP Form 301.

See ITT’s Online Archives or 09/14/10 news, 10091420, for BP summary of CBP extending the comment period on their proposed revisions and details on the draft revised form.)