This placeholder has been on the CBP website for a while now:
In March 2020, the former Importer-Self Assessment (ISA) Program was integrated into CTPAT as CTPAT Trade Compliance. CTPAT Trade Compliance Handbook: Coming Soon
Companies that had been hoping to enroll in ISA have been waiting to see what “Coming Soon” means as, up to this point, participation in the new program has been limited to current ISA members. Well, it looks like the program is moving forward, with the announcement by CBP on August 4th that they’re hoping to have a Federal Register notice opening up participation by the end of this year. Participation is still a few months off, but it looks like the US will shortly have the functional equivalent of an Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) program that contains both compliance and security elements.
According to CBP, importers who enroll in the CTPAT Trade Compliance Program (lots of Cs and Ts and Ps here) and can self-manage all elements of their import transactions will be eligible for the following benefits:
- Access to the Trade Compliance section of the CTPAT Portal
- Front-of-the-queue treatment for National Commodities Division ruling requests
- Coverage for multiple business units
- Access to a National Account Manager
- Removal from the Focused Assessment pool
Most interestingly, if CBP becomes aware of possible violations of 19 U.S.C. 1592 or 1593a, CBP will provide a written notice to the participant that it would be in their interest to consider filing a prior disclosure.
Keep an eye out for the Federal Register notice, as well as a draft of the CTPAT Trade Compliance Handbook. As always, should you have any questions, Tradewin's trade compliance consultants are here to help.
