More ISF | My Site 1

Who can file ISF on my behalf?

Sea AMS list of service providers OR the ABI listing of software vendors from CBP or your broker may able to assist.

Does the ISF filer need to be located in the U.S.?

No, unless the filing is a Unified Entry filing.

Can I amend the bill of lading number on the ISF

Yes. From a transactional standpoint, the system will allow an ISF filer to update an existing ISF with a new bill of lading number. However, the ISF Importer is ultimately responsible for the timely, accurate, and complete submission of the ISF

What if an ISF is filed 24 hours before a vessel departure and a day or two later, the importer comes to know cargo is rolled over to the next vessel, should the ISF be amended?

Not if the bill of lading does not change.

If an ISF was originally filed timely, and it is updated after sailing but prior to arrival, is the ISF considered to be late?

No, updating an ISF does not affect the timeliness (or lateness) of the initial filing. An ISF must be updated if, after the filing is submitted and before the goods enter the limits of a port in the United States.

Is a bill of lading number required at the time of an ISF?

Yes. The ISF Importer or his/her agent must obtain this information and provide it to CBP as part of the ISF.

ISF Bond

All ISF Submissions with Shipment Type code = 01, 02, 07, 08, or 10 must be secured by one of five continuous bonds (Activity Codes 1, 2, 3, 4 or 16) or a Single Transaction Bonds (STB - Activity Code 16).

How household goods and personal effects shipments can be handled in ISF?

Household goods (HHG) and personal effects (PE) can be handled by using a coded transaction Type 03 filing. In this question, the agent becomes the ISF Importer and would provide its own Importer of Record number as long as all of the actual consignees are properly identified within the ISF.

Importer of Record Number

Internal Revenue Service (IRS) number, Employer Identification Number (EIN), Social Security Number (SSN), or CBP assigned number of the entity liable for payment of all duties and responsible for meeting all statutory and regulatory requirements incurred because of importation. The importer of record numbers can be a foreign entity. However, a U.S. entity must be provided for the consignee number element. For goods intended to be delivered to an FTZ, the IRS number, EIN, SSN, or CBP assigned number of the party filing the FTZ documentation with CBP must be provided.

Consignee Number

Internal Revenue Service (IRS) number, Employer Identification Number (EIN), Social Security Number (SSN), or CBP assigned number of the individual(s) or firm(s) in the United States on whose account the merchandise is shipped. This element is the same as the “consignee number”

Do we need to file ISFs for cargo arriving in a port in Canada to be trucked or railed into the U.S.?

No, ISF only applies to ocean shipments arriving by vessel within United States ports, to include, while in transit (FROB/IE/T&E) to Canada or Mexico.

ISF is transmitted to CBP, how will the carrier know it is okay to load the shipment?

CBP provides a status notification message to both the ISF Filer as well as the appropriate carrier that an ISF has successfully matched to a bill of lading that is on file with CBP. The ISF filer receives an S1 and the carrier/NVOCC receives the 3Z when the ISF matches both the bill and bill type of an accepted ISF.

Will CBP provide feedback when the ISF is filed?

Upon receipt of an ISF submission, CBP processes the data and provides immediate feedback to the ISF Filer. The return messages include an acceptance or rejection message. For those filings that CBP accepts CBP will return a unique ISF transaction number.

Code appear in AMS related to ISF filing

2O ISF Hold- no ISF on fileGenerated when a Bill is received without ISF on file as part of the ISF Compliance program

2Q Do Not Load – No ISF On FileGenerated when a Bill is received without ISF on file as part of the ISF Compliance program

3Z ISF on file

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