U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) published the Trade Act regulations in the Federal Register on December 5, 2003. The rule requires advance transmission of electronic cargo information to CBP for both arriving and departing cargo. In the Federal Register notice, CBP identified the Automated Export System as the system of record for transmission of advance electronic export data for all modes of transportation.
On June 2, 2008, the U.S. Census Bureau published amendments to Title 15, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 30, Foreign Trade Regulations, mandating the filing of export information through the Automated Export System or Automated Export SystemDirect for all shipments where a Shipper's Export Declaration was previously required. Questions concerning the Foreign Trade Regulations or the Automated Export System should be directed to the Regulations, Outreach and Education Branch, Foreign Trade Division (ROEB), Census Bureau at (800) 549-0595, select option 1 for the Automated Export System and option 3 for other, regulation-related questions or via email FTDRegs@census.gov.
The purpose of this document is to provide assistance to the trade community in understanding the expectations of CBP concerning the advance electronic cargo information rules for export shipments. Should you have additional questions regarding CBP export enforcement policy that are not included in this document, please submit them electronically to the Headquarters Manifest and Conveyance Branch at Manifest.Branch@dhs.gov. CBP will continue to update the list of questions and answers as issues arise. Consequently, please continue to monitor the CBP - Foreign Trade Regulations (FTR) Frequently Asked Questions document for changes and updates.