The Rules of the Game
Staff -- Tradeshow Week, 5/2/2005
The following Customs and Border Protection regulations are now part of the vernacular of the companies whose job is to get exhibit booths and products to tradeshows on time:
- 24-hour Rule — The customs department must receive detailed electronic information on all U.S.-bound sea cargo a day before the cargo is loaded at the foreign port.
- AMS — The Automated Manifest System is intended to reduce reliance on paper documents and speed up processing, leaving cargo remaining on the dock for less time. Carriers can be alerted more quickly when shipments are cleared or ordered to undergo examinations.
- Bioterrorism Act — Passed in 2002, this act, overseen by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, requires advance notice of incoming food shipments.
- CSI — The Container Security Initiative lets customs agents work with foreign counterparts to target and screen containers before the container is loaded on ships destined for the United States. Customs agents have been posted at 25 overseas ports deemed to pose a terrorist threat, and 19 other countries have elected to participate in the program.
- C-TPAT — Short for Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism, this voluntary supply-chain security program passed in late 2001 can speed up the process for vendors who agree to meet certain security requirements, such as screening employees and partners.
- FAST — The Free and Secure Trade program allows known low-risk carriers to receive expedited processing at the borders between Canada, Mexico and the United States, even during heightened national threat levels. Benefits include dedicated traffic lanes and a reduced number of examinations.
