NCBFAA Customs Committee Highlights Bond Sufficiency Computation

The NCBFAA Customs Committee brings to the attention of our customs broker members and their importer clients a reminder of the bond sufficiency computation.

The current bond sufficiency computation guidance is outlined in the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) A Guide for the Public: How CBP Sets Bond Amounts | U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Under this guidance, bond sufficiency is calculated using estimated duties, taxes, and fees (DTFs).

Bond sufficiency calculations are based on the estimated duties, taxes, and fees reported in the most recent major version of the entry summary submitted by the trade. Although CBP may subsequently determine different ascertained amounts through Consolidated Administration and Process of Entries (CAPE) processing or other adjustments, those ascertained amounts are used for liquidation bill/refund determinations rather than for bond sufficiency calculations.

Key Points:

Estimated Duties, Taxes, and Fees Are Used for Bond Sufficiency

·     CBP policy and guidance specify that estimated duties, taxes, and fees are used in the bond sufficiency calculation.

·     Estimated duties, taxes, and fees are the amounts transmitted by the trade community in the most recent major version of an entry summary. 

What Are Ascertained Duties, Taxes, and Fees?

·     The ascertained amount from the most current version of the entry summary represents the final liability and is used to determine any liquidation bill or refund.

·     Entry summaries updated through CAPE processing results in a minorversion of an entry summary and reflect revised ascertained duties, taxes, and fees.

·     The estimated amounts remain the figures most recently transmitted by the filer in a major version of the entry summary and can be reported on in ACE reports.

·     Ascertained amounts are the amounts determined by CBP to be owed and may be: Higher than the estimated amounts/Lower than the estimated amounts/Equal to the estimated amounts.

·     At liquidation, the ascertained amount contained in the most current version of the entry summary (whether a major or minor version) is used to calculate any bill or refund.‍ ‍

Entry Summary Versions

Filers can view entry summary versions through: 

·     ACE Entry Summary Query Version Number: code indicating the version number of the entry summary. The first 3 characters indicate the “major” revision number; the last 2 characters indicate the “minor” revision number.

·     ACE Reports Version: The number to the left of the decimal (major revision) indicates the number of times the entry summary has been changed by the filer. The number to the right of the decimal (minor revision) indicates the number of times the entry summary has been modified by CBP. 

Understanding Version Numbers

Major Version Number

The entry summary version number will be 1.0 or 00100 when the entry summary is initially filed and accepted in ACE. The revision number will remain 1.0 or 00100 if the filer submits add or replace entry summary filing action requests until the time the entry summary is put on a statement. The major revision portion of the version number will only change when the entry summary has been rejected by CBP or taken off statement and subsequently replaced by the filer. For example, when the entry summary is replaced after one of these actions, the entry summary version number of 2.0 or 00200 indicates such a situation. 

A New Major version can result from: 

·     Remove the entry summary from a daily statement and subsequent retransmission.

·     Rejection of an Entry Summary by CBP(UC4) and subsequent refiling of the summary.

·     Post Summary Correction.

Examples:

·     1.0 (00100) – Original entry summary

·     2.0(00200) – One filer-initiated revision (e.g., Removed from statement and subsequent transmission))

·     3.0 (00300) – Two filer-initiated revisions (e.g., PSC) 

Minor Version Number

The number to the right of the decimal indicates the number of times the entry summary has been modified by CBP. The minor revision portion of the version will only change when the entry summary has been modified by an authorized CBP user. For example, an entry summary revision number of 2.01 or 00201 indicates that the entry summary was replaced by the filer after CBP rejection (or taken off statement) or a PSC and subsequently modified once by an authorized CBP user.  

Example:

2.01/(00201) – One CBP modification (For Example CAPE filing/CF29 Rate Advance/AD/CVD rate change)

For further questions or discussion, please contact your South East World Wide (Chicago), Ltd. Sales Representative.