(a) General requirement. Pursuant to section 343(a), Trade Act of 2002, as amended (19 U.S.C. 2071 note), for any inbound aircraft required to make entry under §122.41, that will have commercial cargo aboard, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) must electronically receive from the inbound air carrier and, if applicable, an approved party as specified in paragraph (c)(1) of this section, certain information concerning the inbound cargo, as enumerated, respectively, in paragraphs (d)(1) and (d)(2) of this section. CBP must receive such information according to the time frames prescribed in paragraph (b) of this section. However, a subset of these data elements known as ACAS data and identified in paragraph (d) of this section, is also subject to the requirements and time frame described in §122.48b. The advance electronic transmission of the required cargo information to CBP must be effected through a CBP-approved electronic data interchange system.

(1) Cargo remaining aboard aircraft; cargo to be entered under bond. Air cargo arriving from and departing for a foreign country on the same through flight and cargo that is unladen from the arriving aircraft and entered, in bond, for exportation, or for transportation and exportation (see subpart J of this part), are subject to the advance electronic information filing requirement under paragraph (a) of this section.

(2) Diplomatic Pouches and Diplomatic Cargo. When goods comprising a diplomatic or consular bag (including cargo shipments, containers, and the like identified as Diplomatic Pouch) that belong to the United States or to a foreign government are shipped under an air waybill, such cargo is subject to the advance reporting requirements, but the description of the shipment as Diplomatic Pouch will be sufficient detail for description. Shipments identified as Diplomatic Cargo, such as office supplies or unaccompanied household goods, are subject to the advance reporting requirements of paragraph (a) of this section.

(b) Time frame for presenting data—(1) Nearby foreign areas. In the case of aircraft under paragraph (a) of this section that depart for the United States from any foreign port or place in North America, including locations in Mexico, Central America, South America (from north of the Equator only), the Caribbean, and Bermuda, CBP must receive the required cargo information no later than the time of the departure of the aircraft for the United States (the trigger time is no later than the time that wheels are up on the aircraft, and the aircraft is en route directly to the United States).

(2) Other foreign areas. In the case of aircraft under paragraph (a) of this section that depart for the United States from any foreign area other than that specified in paragraph (b)(1) of this section, CBP must receive the required cargo information no later than 4 hours prior to the arrival of the aircraft in the United States.

(c) Party electing to file advance electronic cargo data—(1) Other filer. In addition to incoming air carriers for whom participation is mandatory, one of the following parties meeting the qualifications of paragraph (c)(2) of this section, may elect to transmit to CBP the electronic data for incoming cargo that is listed in paragraph (d)(2) of this section:

(i) An Automated Broker Interface (ABI) filer (importer or its Customs broker) as identified by its ABI filer code;

(ii) A Container Freight Station/deconsolidator as identified by its FIRMS (Facilities Information and Resources Management System) code;

(iii) An Express Consignment Carrier Facility as identified by its FIRMS code; or,

(iv) An air carrier as identified by its carrier IATA (International Air Transport Association) code, that arranged to have the incoming air carrier transport the cargo to the United States.

(2) Eligibility. To be qualified to file cargo information electronically, a party identified in paragraph (c)(1) of this section must establish the communication protocol required by CBP for properly presenting cargo information through the approved data interchange system. Also, other than a broker or an importer (see §113.62(k)(2) of this chapter), the party must possess a Customs international carrier bond containing all the necessary provisions of §113.64 of this chapter.

(3) Nonparticipation by other party. If another party as specified in paragraph (c)(1) of this section does not participate in advance electronic cargo information filing, the party that arranges for and/or delivers the cargo shipment to the incoming carrier must fully disclose and present to the carrier the cargo information listed in paragraph (d)(2) of this section; and the incoming carrier must present this information electronically to CBP under paragraph (a) of this section.

(4) Required information in possession of third party. Any other entity in possession of required cargo data that is not the incoming air carrier or a party described in paragraph (c)(1) of this section must fully disclose and present the required data for the inbound air cargo to either the air carrier or other electronic filer, as applicable, which must present such data to CBP.

(5) Party receiving information believed to be accurate. Where the party electronically presenting the cargo information required in paragraph (d) of this section receives any of this information from another party, CBP will take into consideration how, in accordance with ordinary commercial practices, the presenting party acquired such information, and whether and how the presenting party is able to verify this information. Where the presenting party is not reasonably able to verify such information, CBP will permit the party to electronically present the information on the basis of what that party reasonably believes to be true.

(d) Non-consolidated/consolidated shipments. For non-consolidated shipments, the incoming air carrier must transmit to CBP all of the information for the air waybill record, as enumerated in paragraph (d)(1) of this section. For consolidated shipments: the incoming air carrier must transmit to CBP the information listed in paragraph (d)(1) of this section that is applicable to the master air waybill; and the air carrier must transmit cargo information for all associated house air waybills as enumerated in paragraph (d)(2) of this section, unless another party as described in paragraph (c)(1) of this section electronically transmits this information directly to CBP.

(1) Cargo information from air carrier. The incoming air carrier must present to CBP the following data elements for inbound air cargo (an “M” next to any listed data element indicates that the data element is mandatory in all cases; a “C” next to the listed data element indicates that the data element is conditional and must be transmitted to CBP only if the particular information pertains to the inbound cargo; and an “A” next to any listed data element indicates that the data element is an ACAS data element that is also subject to the requirements and time frame specified in §122.48b):

(i) Air waybill number (M) (A) (The air waybill number is the International Air Transport Association (IATA) standard 11-digit number);

(ii) Trip/flight number (M);

(iii) Carrier/ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) code (M) (The approved electronic data interchange system supports both 3- and 2-character ICAO codes, provided that the final digit of the 2-character code is not a numeric value);

(iv) Airport of arrival (M) (The 3-alpha character ICAO code corresponding to the first airport of arrival in the Customs territory of the United States (for example, Chicago O'Hare = ORD; Los Angeles International Airport = LAX));

(v) Airport of origin (M) (The 3-alpha character ICAO code corresponding to the airport from which a shipment began its transportation by air to the United States (for example, if a shipment began its transportation from Hong Kong (HKG), and it transits through Narita, Japan (NRT), en route to the United States, the airport of origin is HKG, not NRT));

(vi) Scheduled date of arrival (M);

(vii) Total quantity based on the smallest external packing unit (M) (A) (for example, 2 pallets containing 50 pieces each would be considered as 100, not 2);

(viii) Total weight (M) (A) (may be expressed in either pounds or kilograms);

(ix) Precise cargo description (M) (A) (for consolidated shipments, the word “Consolidation” is a sufficient description for the master air waybill record; for non-consolidated shipments, a precise cargo description or the 6-digit Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) number must be provided (generic descriptions, specifically those such as “FAK” (“freight of all kinds”), “general cargo”, and “STC” (“said to contain”) are not acceptable));

(x) Shipper name and address (M) (A) (for consolidated shipments, the identity of the consolidator, express consignment or other carrier, is sufficient for the master air waybill record; for non-consolidated shipments, the name of the foreign vendor, supplier, manufacturer, or other similar party is acceptable (and the address of the foreign vendor, etc., must be a foreign address); by contrast, the identity of a carrier, freight forwarder or consolidator is not acceptable);

(xi) Consignee name and address (M) (A) (for consolidated shipments, the identity of the container station (see 19 CFR 19.40-19.49), express consignment or other carrier is sufficient for the master air waybill record; for non-consolidated shipments, the name and address of the party to whom the cargo will be delivered is required regardless of the location of the party; this party need not be located at the arrival or destination port);

(xii) Consolidation identifier (C);

(xiii) Split shipment indicator (C) (see paragraph (d)(3) of this section for the specific data elements that must be presented to CBP in the case of a split shipment);

(xiv) Permit to proceed information (C) (this element includes the permit-to-proceed destination airport (the 3-alpha character ICAO code corresponding to the permit-to-proceed destination airport); and the scheduled date of arrival at the permit-to-proceed destination airport);

(xv) Identifier of other party which is to submit additional air waybill information (C);

(xvi) In-bond information (C) (this data element includes the destination airport; the international/domestic identifier (the in-bond type indicator); the in-bond control number, if there is one (C); and the onward carrier identifier, if applicable (C));

(xvii) Local transfer facility (C) (this facility is a Container Freight Station as identified by its FIRMS code, or the warehouse of another air carrier as identified by its carrier code); and

(xviii) Flight departure message (M) (this data element includes the liftoff date and liftoff time using the Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)/Universal Time, Coordinated (UTC) at the time of departure from each foreign airport en route to the United States; if an aircraft en route to the United States stops at one or more foreign airports and cargo is loaded on board, the flight departure message must be provided for each departure).

(2) Cargo information from carrier or other filer. The incoming air carrier must present the following additional information to CBP for the incoming cargo, unless another party as specified in paragraph (c)(1) of this section elects to present this information directly to CBP. Information for all house air waybills under a single master air waybill consolidation must be presented electronically to CBP by the same party. (An “M” next to any listed data element indicates that the data element is mandatory in all cases; a “C” next to any listed data element indicates that the data element is conditional and must be transmitted to CBP only if the particular information pertains to the inbound cargo; and an “A” next to any listed data element indicates that the data element is an ACAS data element that is also subject to the requirements and time frame specified in §122.48b):

(i) The master air waybill number and the associated house air waybill number (M) (A) (the house air waybill number may be up to 12 alphanumeric characters (each alphanumeric character that is indicated on the paper house air waybill document must be included in the electronic transmission; alpha characters may not be eliminated));

(ii) Foreign airport of origin (M) (The 3-alpha character ICAO code corresponding to the airport from which a shipment began its transportation by air to the United States (for example, if a shipment began its transportation from Hong Kong (HKG), and it transits through Narita, Japan (NRT), en route to the United States, the airport of origin is HKG, not NRT));

(iii) Cargo description (M) (A) (a precise description of the cargo or the 6-digit Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) number must be provided);

(iv) Total quantity based on the smallest external packing unit (M) (A) (for example, 2 pallets containing 50 pieces each would be considered as 100, not 2);

(v) Total weight of cargo (M) (A) (may be expressed in either pounds or kilograms);

(vi) Shipper name and address (M) (A) (the name of the foreign vendor, supplier, manufacturer, or other similar party is acceptable (and the address of the foreign vendor, etc., must be a foreign address); by contrast, the identity of a carrier, freight forwarder or consolidator is not acceptable);

(vii) Consignee name and address (M) (A) (the name and address of the party to whom the cargo will be delivered is required regardless of the location of the party; this party need not be located at the arrival or destination port); and

(viii) In-bond information (C) (this data element includes the destination airport; the international/domestic identifier (the in-bond type indicator); the in-bond control number, if there is one (C); and the onward carrier identifier, if applicable (C)).

(3) Additional cargo information from air carrier; split shipment. When the incoming air carrier elects to transport cargo covered under a single consolidated air waybill on more than one aircraft as a split shipment (see §141.57 of this chapter), the carrier must report the following additional information for each house air waybill covered under the consolidation (An “M” next to any listed data element indicates that the data element is mandatory in all cases; a “C” next to any listed data element indicates that the data element is conditional and must be transmitted to CBP only if the particular information pertains to the inbound cargo):

(i) The master and house air waybill number (M) (The master air waybill number is the IATA standard 11-digit number; the house air waybill number may be up to 12 alphanumeric characters (each alphanumeric number that is indicated on the paper house air waybill must be included in the electronic transmission; alpha characters may not be eliminated));

(ii) The trip/flight number (M);

(iii) The carrier/ICAO code (M) (The approved electronic data interchange system supports both 3- and 2-character ICAO codes, provided that the final digit of the 2-character code is not a numeric value);

(iv) The airport of arrival (M) (The 3-alpha character ICAO code corresponding to the first airport of arrival in the Customs territory of the United States (for example, Chicago O'Hare = ORD; Los Angeles International Airport = LAX));

(v) The airport of origin (M) (The 3-alpha character ICAO code corresponding to the airport from which a shipment began its transportation by air to the United States (for example, if a shipment began its transportation from Hong Kong (HKG), and it transits through Narita, Japan (NRT), en route to the United States, the airport of origin is HKG, not NRT));

(vi) Scheduled date of arrival (M);

(vii) The total quantity of the cargo covered by the house air waybill based on the smallest external packing unit (M) (For example, 2 pallets containing 50 pieces each would be considered as 100, not 2);

(viii) The total weight of the cargo covered by the house air waybill (M) (May be expressed in either pounds or kilograms);

(ix) Description (M) (This description should mirror the precise level of cargo description information that is furnished to the incoming carrier by the other electronic filer, if applicable (see paragraph (c)(1) of this section));

(x) Permit-to-proceed information (C) (This element includes the permit-to-proceed destination airport (the 3-alpha character ICAO code corresponding to the permit-to-proceed destination airport); and the scheduled date of arrival at the permit-to-proceed destination airport);

(xi) Boarded quantity (C) (The quantity of the cargo covered by the house air waybill (see paragraph (d)(3)(vii) of this section) that is included in the incoming portion of the split shipment); and

(xii) Boarded weight (C) (The weight of the cargo covered by the house air waybill (see paragraph (d)(3)(viii) of this section) that is included in the incoming portion of the split shipment).

[CBP Dec. 03-32, 68 FR 68170, Dec. 5, 2003, as amended at CBP Dec. 08-46, 73 FR 71782, Nov. 25, 2008; CBP Dec. 09-39, 74 FR 52677, Oct. 14, 2009; CBP Dec. 18-05, 83 FR 27404, June 12, 2018]