Simplified Entry Q's and A's

Simplified Entry Pilot
Frequently Asked Questions: Technical
External Version
Updated: August 15, 2012

Table of Contents
General
Bill of Lading
Pilot Requirements
Simplified Entry Data Elements
Cargo Release

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General:

1. When will the Simplified Entry Pilot be deployed?
Simplified Entry (SE) has been deployed to the first wave of pilot ports on May 29, 2012. We will
continue to deploy SE during the months of August and September 2012 to additional ports.
2. Can a filer use a Dun and Bradstreet (DUNS) number to identify a seller’s, buyer’s, etc.
address?
CBP will not be using DUNS numbers in lieu of an address.
3. If a Simplified Entry cannot be modified, how will corrections be handled? Must these be pen
and ink changes?
Under the Pilot, CBP will allow filers to modify entry data electronically and completely replace the SE
data up until conveyance arrival. This will allow the Trade to update for the best available information.
After conveyance arrival the SE filer may only to an Update to the bill of lading, similar to the LN
update in ABI.
4. For “Documents Required” are filers required to submit via the Document Imaging System
(DIS)? If so, what document types does this pertain to?
No, DIS is not supported for the initial pilot, although this support is planned for future releases.
Currently CBP is leveraging specific port group email boxes that are identified in each specific port for
now. There is a major push to incorporate the DIS functionality so that way the SE filers have one
centralized location to submit documents for an SE.
5. If an estimated value is entered, what is the provision to correct a CBP Form 7501, “Entry
Summary,” after the entry process when the actual value is known?
This does not pose any changes to the current Entry Summary process. The actual value can be
submitted once the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) Entry Summary is filed.
6. Will the Simplified Entry Pilot be covered in the upcoming Software Developers Conference?
Yes.
7. Will there be any requirements to summarize the data on the Simplified Entry?
No. There are no requirements at this time to summarize the data on the Simplified Entry.
8. What is CBP’s plan to incorporate Participating Government Agencies (PGAs) in the
Simplified Entry Pilot?
Upon the success of the Simplified Entry Pilot, CBP will aggressively move forward to incorporate the
PGA message set within the Simplified Entry Pilot.
9. Will the tariff be updated with the PGA indicators?
Yes, CBP will coordinate these details.
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Bill of Lading:

1. Will CBP provide a method in which to identify a Simple Bill, as is it does with Importer
Security Filing, (Master Bill of Lading, Ocean Bill of Lading/Simple Bill, House Bill of Lading)?
There is a Simple Bill indicator in the SE15 since this is a type of bill that is submitted by the carriers.
2. What should go in the mandatory field for issuer code for an Air House Bill of Lading? For an
Air Master Bill of Lading or straight bill, would a filer report the International Air Transport
Association (IATA) two (2) alpha or the three (3) numeric, or is it not needed as the three (3)
numeric is part of the Airway Bill?
For the pilot in the Air Mode this field is not required.
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Pilot Requirements:

1. I did not see any reference to a Customs bond number, bond effective date, or surety code.
Can you advise if bond data is a requirement to expedite cargo release, where the data would
appear, and how a Surety would be notified of bond utilization under Simplified Entry?
For the initial pilot phase, all participants must have a continuous bond on file; therefore, these
records would not be included in this phase. For future pilots, CBP is exploring the option of adding
Single Transaction Bond capability.
2. When a filer submits a Simplified Entry, is the CBP Form 3461, “Entry/Immediate Delivery” to
be used to communicate the Delivery Authorization?
For those filers utilizing the Simplified Entry data set, the Simplified Entry data filing will replace the
3461. The filers will be able to use the screen print from their ABI software that shows the Release
from CBP and certain data elements need to be on the screen print. For example: piece count, AWB
number at the house and master or simple bill level, etc. The interim use of a screen print is intended
for presentation and recordkeeping needs for non-Automated CFS’s per the recently issued CBP
guidance on this.
3. Is there any change in the print requirements to the CBP Form 3461 in this case since many of
the data elements on the form are not required for Simplified Entry?
See question above.
4. If a Simplified Entry is filed for the full quantity on a House Bill of Lading and the Air
Automated Manifest System (AMS) system shows that the House Bill has been split, will the
Simplified Entry be rejected?
CBP is designing the system that if the bill splits, then it will not process the Simplified Entry, since
the entry will not have either the “A” or the “B” record. This still requires further analysis from CBP, but
ultimately if a split occurs, the Simplified Entry will need to be cancelled and a traditional entry should
be submitted for shipment.
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Simplified Entry Data Elements:

1. The Customs and Trade Automated Interface Requirements (CATAIR) chapter does not
indicate that Simplified Entry is Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) only. Is it?
Yes, Simplified Entry is an ACE transaction and an ACE Entry Summary (AE) must follow the
Simplified Entry transaction.
2. The marking on the CATAIR may be confusing to the Trade as it is not marked as “ACE
CATAIR,” but just “CATAIR;” will CBP be modifying this?
Yes, CBP will work with its Client Rep Branch and the OIT Development Team to ensure the CATAIR
markings are properly aligned and it conforms to the ACE CATAIR format.
3. Have the CATAIR application identifier codes been identified for Simplified Entry?
Yes, the identifier codes are ‘SE’ for entry submissions, ‘SX’ for data accept/reject and ‘SO’ for entry
status.
4. When will the CATAIR Chapter be finalized?
Currently there is a Final Draft of the SE CATAIR that can be used during the pilot for Production and
this DRAFT is consistent with the rules and guidelines for the pilot. A Final DRAFT that would take
into account all entry types, MOT’s, In-bonds, RLF and any other entry functionality is currently being
worked on by CBP and will be available for review in the future.
5. What are the CATAIR Application Identifier codes for the Simplified Entry input and response
transactions? These are missing from the CATAIR (for example, the CBP Form 7501
input/response application identifiers are "AE" and "AX").
The identifier codes are ‘SE’ for entry submissions, ‘SX’ for data accept/reject and ‘SO’ for entry
status.
6. The CATAIR or FRN does not state that the Manufacturer must be associated with a
Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) number. Since this is required for Importer Security Filing,
must a Filer do the same here – preceding the SE45 with the SE30-35 that relate to those
lines?
The current published CATAIR is a draft document and is still subject to change. A Manufacturer is
still required for each HTS number, however, it can be reported at the line level or the header level if it
applies to all lines.
7. What is the application identifier for the message to CBP, and, for the response to the Trade?
The identifier codes are ‘SE’ for entry submissions, ‘SX’ for data accept/reject and ‘SO’ for entry
status.
8. Will there be line numbers on admissions or responses in order for Pilot participants to
identify them when they receive an error?
Yes, there will be line numbers.

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9. When is the finalized Simplified Entry data set expected to be completed and distributed?
Currently there is a Final Draft of the SE CATAIR that can be used during the pilot for Production and
this DRAFT is consistent with the rules and guidelines for the pilot. A Final DRAFT that would take
into account all entry types, MOT’s, In-bonds, RLF and any other entry functionality is currently being
worked on by CBP and will be available for review in the future.
10. How many data elements will be required for filers to submit a Simplified Entry filing?
There are 12 required data elements, plus three optional ones. These optional elements are
voluntary. Deployment of Simplified Entry in future modes of transpiration may require additional data
elements. Click the link here to the Federal Register Notice (FRN) for further information.
11. Comparing the 27 data fields on the CBP Form 3461 with the Simplified Entry list of 12
required data elements and three (3) optional data elements:
a. Confirming CBP is requesting for information on more parties (i.e. addresses)?
b. Why is CBP not requiring Quantity as a data element?
c. Confirming CBP is not requiring the Arrival Data, Elected Entry Date, or Port?
d. Confirming CBP is not requiring Certification?
See above response. There are 12 required data elements for Simplified Entry, plus three optional
ones. These optional elements are voluntary. Deployment of Simplified Entry in future modes of
transpiration may require additional data elements. Click the link here to the FRN for further
information.
12. With respect to the SE35 record, there is also a record for unstructured street address. Can
Pilot participants repeat that record?
The SE35 record can be repeated 3 times for each party being reported. The SE35 record supports
the reporting of both structured and unstructured addresses.
13. Should the Bill of Lading being sent in the SE15 record be at the lowest level? If sending the
House Airway Bill, do filers need to send an SE15 with the Master also?
Here is how the SE filer should be reporting the bill in the SE15 record:
House Bill of Lading – use an SE15 record with Bill Type Indicator ‘M’ to report the Master Bill
of Lading Number (including the AWB prefix) followed by another SE15 with Bill Type
Indicator ‘H’ and the House Bill of Lading Number; do not report an issuer code.
Simple Bill of Lading – use a single SE15 record with Bill Type Indicator ‘R’ to report the Simple Bill of
Lading Number (including the AWB prefix); do not report an issuer code.
Express Carrier Tracking Number – use a single SE15 record with Bill Type Indicator ‘T’ to
report the Tracking Number (including the AWB prefix); do not report an issuer code.
CBP’s system will match up to the carrier data and then update the Master and flight accordingly.
14. What is the definition of the country sub entity code on the SE36 record?
That is a state or province code where the city is located in the country. CBP will input a link to the
United Nations website for this purpose.

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15. For the SE30, what Entity Identifier Qualifier do filers use for the Manufacturer/Supplier? Is it
the MID (Manufacturers Identification Number)?
The identifier is not supported for Manufacturer/Supplier, the name and address must be supplied.
Valid identifiers for other parties can be found in the SE CATAIR on page SE-16.
16. Should the MF and CN be reported at the line level if there is only one MF and CN entity to be
reported for the entire entity?
Current CBP design allows MF (or CN) to be reported at the header level, or at the line level. Any
party identified in the header level will be tied to every line if they are the same party. An example is if
there are two (2) line items with two (2) MFs, but one seller. The seller is reported at the header level
and the two (2) MFs are reported at the line level.
17. The message set includes no dates, what date will be used to validate tariff selection?
CBP will use the Simplified Entry filing date, which is the date the filing is received by CBP, to validate
the tariff selection.
18. If the Pilot is going to be an ACE system release, will this take into consideration an
expansion of the line number instead of the current 999 restrictions?
CBP is looking to expand the limitations, but do not expect to expand near the 9,999 level proposed
by Entry Summary. The reason why we are not able to expand to 9,999 line items is due to ACS. All
of Cargo Release still resides in ACS and majority of Entry Summary filings are in ACS. Once we
move these filings to ACE then this may be considered.
19. At what point should the Update Action code be set to an ‘R’ rather than an ‘A’?
When an SE has been accepted and the conveyance has been arrived thus the bill is arrived only an
Update action will be allowed. Before the conveyance has been arrived an action code of Replace
may be sent for the SE.
20. If a transaction is sent and accepted, should subsequent re-sends of that entry be sent as an
‘R’?
Yes, because it has been accepted as a complete record.
21. Once an Acceptance has been received on the SX transaction, if a subsequent send of an
entry is rejected, is the entry still stored on the CBP system? So that a re-send of that entry
would still be sent as an ‘R’?
Yes, it is still stored since the replace failed and any re-sends will still require an action of ‘R’ since the
record originally was accepted and is stored as a completed record.

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Cargo Release:
1. Because there are no dates filed on the Entry Summary process, when does the clock start,
upon release, or, the actual date of arrival?
The clock will start after arrival or release, whichever is later.

2. If the entry is released as an Entry Type 01 using Simplified Entry and later determined to be
an entry type that is not ACE eligible, what will be the procedure for this?
The Simplified Entry will need to be cancelled and a regular entry submission will be required.
3. Is Simplified Entry considered an ACE release?
Simplified Entry is an initial installment of establishing ACE release functionality and considered a
modernization element.
4. At what point is a delete transaction required for an SE, if the broker determines that the entry
won’t meet all the Simplified Entry criteria?
This is currently being reviewed by CBP to make a determination that the Trade will be able to delete
an SE after it has been accepted and a response (SO) has NOT been issued stating that there is a bill
match. Once there is a bill match either by an ACAS or AAMS filing and an entry disposition has
been issued the SE is considered to be in CBP status and a Delete action will not be allowed. The SE
filer would need to request the SE to be canceled and normal cancellation procedures need to be
followed per CBP Directive 5610-006A.
5. Is a delete required if an SE transaction has been sent one or more times, but each SE
transaction has been rejected?
No, because it never was accepted.
6. Is a delete required if any transmission of the SE data has been accepted?
A delete will only be allowed for an SE that has been accepted and there is no Match to an ACAS or
AAMS bill filing.
7. Or, is there some other criteria that has to be met – for example, only if SO results have been
received for the entry?
A delete will only be allowed for an SE that has been accepted and there is no Match to an ACAS or
AAMS bill filing.
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