Customs Notice 17-22, Interim Process for Electronic House Bills

The following is available in its entirety on the Canada Border Services Agency website.

Customs Notice 17-22, Interim Process for Electronic House Bills

  1. This notice provides new information regarding the requirements for electronic house bills during the interim voluntary period as indicated in Customs Notice 17-15, Changes to the Implementation Timeline for Electronic House Bills.
  2. The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has developed an interim process to address current security and program integrity concerns until systems enhancements for electronic house bill requirements and functionality are deployed. These system enhancements are necessary to fully support the eManifest program and to allow freight forwarders to comply with all reporting requirements.
  3. As of August 14th, 2017 and for the duration of the interim period outlined in Customs Notice 17-15, the option of allowing single shipments (back to back shipments) using the electronic house bills to release goods from primary sufferance warehouses will be suspended. Prior to this date the CBSA will allow freight forwarders to adjust and make any necessary processing changes, but we encourage freight forwarders to cease transmitting electronic house bills for back to back shipments destined to a primary warehouse as soon as possible.
  4. Freight forwarders must implement the following for import or in bond consolidated shipments including back to back shipments:
  • a. All electronically transmitted house bills must be destined to a CW warehouse. The release request must quote the lowest level house bill.
  • b. Release requests for back to back shipments clearing from a primary warehouse must be on the primary cargo control number and shipments will be released on the primary cargo control number. Pre-arrival / pre-load ACI S10 supplementary reports will be required for air and marine back to back shipments.
  • c. If electronic house bills are not transmitted, the freight forwarder must present paper house bills to the CBSA post arrival for validation for all consolidated house bills. The release request must quote the lowest level paper house bills destined to a CW (secondary) warehouse. Pre-arrival / pre-load ACI S10 supplementary reports will be required for air and marine consolidated house bills.
  1. The following are consolidated shipment scenarios which require one or more house bills. If electronic house bill(s) are transmitted, the destination sublocation code on the house bill(s) must be an approved deconsolidation type warehouse as per Memorandum D4-1-4, Customs Sufferance Warehouses.
  • a. Multi-shipment consolidations – A number of separate shipments grouped together by a consolidator or freight forwarder and shipped to an agent or a freight forwarder as one shipment under one bill of lading.
  • b. Single shipments (back to back) – Shipments that involve both a freight forwarder and a primary carrier, but consist of only one shipment.
  • c. Buyer’s Consolidations – Full container loads (FCL) that involve multiple shipments grouped together on multiple house bills of lading being delivered to one importer/consignee.
  1. Timeframes for the transmission of supplementary reports are the same timeframes for airand marinecargo. Supplementary reports may be transmitted by either the primary carrier or the freight forwarder.
  2. Freight forwarders should continue to transmit electronic house bills for consolidated shipments destined to a CW warehouse.