CBP Hopes to Begin Type 86 Entry Test in Fall
SAN ANTONIO -- CBP is hoping to publish a rule on the testing of the new Entry Type 86 for low value shipments in the fall, said Thomas Overacker, CBP executive director, Cargo and Conveyance Security, on April 17 at the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America's annual conference. The Entry Type 86 is meant as a means to provide information to the Partner Government Agencies on goods that are eligible for the Section 321 exemptions. "This data will also give us an opportunity for great risk segmentation," he said.
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The filing of the Entry Type 86 "will most definitely be customs business," Overacker said. "We're not moving as fast as we want, but we're going to get this out" and "begin a test starting in the fall." CBP also recently released a draft CBP and Trade Automated Interface Requirements to allow the agency to begin collecting Type 86 data (see 1903210039).
The growth in e-commerce is already likely causing some erosion of business for customs brokers, said Mary Jo Muoio, senior vice president, Trade Services and Government Relations, for Geodis USA. "Yes, e-commerce is changing all of our businesses. Some of it is on us as private businesses to handle. Some of it is on us collectively as an industry," she said. The Entry Type 86 "is going to be a vehicle for communicating those regulations to those appropriate agencies while at the same time giving our client the benefit of the duty and tax exemption, so I think this is a good opportunity for us," she said.
There are multiple reasons filers might decide to use the Type 86 rather than use the clearing off the manifest, which will still be an option after Type 86 becomes available, Overacker said. Customers may find it preferable to have more information on what is coming in or going out "as opposed to if it's cleared off the manifest they may not have a permanent record," he said. Some may also see the Type 86 as useful for drawback purposes, Muoio said.
There are still unanswered questions, though. Muoio noted that for a Type 86 in which an importer of record number is required due to PGA requirements, because it is "customs business" it may require a power of attorney. Unclear, though, is if a broker is filing a Type 86 entry without an importer of record number because there is no PGA requirement, "who do I get the power of attorney from?" Muoio said.
CBP worked closely with the White House and provided advice on the recent memorandum that tasked "the complete government" with reviewing current policies and reporting on ways to reduce the trade of counterfeit goods (see 1904030037), Overacker said. The report will be due to the White House by Oct. 30, and a public version will be released soon after that, he said.
Overacker also mentioned that the planned shift of CBP officers from airports, seaports and the Northern border to the Southern border (see 1904160029) could result in slower trade processing in all modes. The hope is that by moving those officers, CBP can better balance the effects across the agency rather than only along the Southern border, he said. "This could, potentially, have consequences in our express facilities, in our mail facilities, and certainly with respect to passenger processing or ocean cargo," he said.