Effective July 18, 2019, the Postal Service™ is revising Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®), section 608.2.5, to align with the Foreign Trade Regulations that the U.S. Census Bureau issued for items sent to international military and diplomatic destinations — i.e., Army Post Offices (APOs), Fleet Post Offices (FPOs), and Diplomatic Post Offices (DPOs).
Effective May 20, 2016, the U.S. Census Bureau completed the transition from the Automated Export System’s (AES) legacy AESDirect website to the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) website, which now contains the ACE AESDirect system. The Postal Service is revising sections of DMM 608.2.5 to reflect the proper steps that mailers must take to file Electronic Export Information (EEI) via the ACE AESDirect system, and when the system is unavailable.
Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM)
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600 Basic Standards for All Mailing Services
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608 Postal Information and Resources
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2.0 Domestic Mail
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2.5 Foreign Trade Regulations — U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Bureau of the Census
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This section describes the various U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Bureau of the Census requirements when shipping goods to, from, and between U.S. territories, possessions, and Freely Associated States. Refer to Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, International Mail Manual (IMM®), section 520, for more U.S. Census Bureau standards and for requirements when shipping items mailed from American Samoa, Guam, or the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands to foreign countries.
Goods mailed to APO/FPO/DPO addresses are subject to the Foreign Trade Regulations. However, mailers are exempt from filing electronic export information, unless mandatory filing is required by 15 CFR 30.2(a)(1)(iv). See IMM 524.21e and 524.21f for more information regarding mandatory filing. Customers may be subject to civil and criminal penalties if they fail to electronically file their export information when required, or if they fail to comply with the Foreign Trade Regulations in any other way.
The following are not subject to these requirements:
a. Items mailed from the Freely Associated States (see 608.2.2).
b. Items mailed from the U.S. Virgin Islands to the United States or Puerto Rico.
c. Items mailed within or between American Samoa, Guam, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
d. Items mailed from American Samoa, Guam, or the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands to the United States, Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands.
e. Items mailed from the United States, Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands to American Samoa, Guam, or the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
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2.5.1 Mandatory Electronic Filing — U.S. Territories, Possessions, and Freely Associated States
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Under the authority of 13 U.S.C. Chapter 9, as amended by the Foreign Relations Authorization Act of 2002, P.L. 107-228, U.S. Census Bureau regulations require electronic filing of export information through the Automated Export System (AES) or Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) AESDirect system for certain shipments of goods.***
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2.5.3 How to File Electronic Export Information and Obtain an Internal Transaction Number
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a. Preliminary Steps for First-time Filers
AESDirect requires each mailer to have an employer identification number (EIN) and an ACE Exporter Account. Therefore, a first-time filer must complete the following steps:
1. Obtain an EIN from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) at sa.www4.rs.gov/modiein/individual/index.jsp.
Note: A mailer does not have to be an employer to apply for an EIN.
2. Set up an ACE Exporter Account on the Customs and Border Protection website at cbp.gov/trade/automated/getting-started/portal-applying. Under “Applying for an Account,” in Step 3, select the option for “Exporters: Apply here” to complete and submit the online form.
Note: For account verification purposes, the “Shared Secret Value” is the “User ID.”
b. Filing EEI
A customer who has obtained an EIN and has established an ACE Exporter Account must complete the following steps:
1. Log into the customer’s existing ACE Exporter Account at ace.cbp.dhs.gov.
2. Use the following information when completing the EEI fields:
(a) The “Port of Export” code for shipping through the Postal Service is “8000.”
(b) The “Mode of Transport” is “Mail.”
(c) Leave the carrier as “SCAC/IATA,” and leave the conveyance name fields blank.
3. Complete the remaining data fields and file the EEI. For more information about filing EEI, refer to the ACE AESDirect User Guide at census.gov/foreign-trade/aes/aesdirect/AESDirect-User-Guide.pdf.
After the customer files the EEI, the AES will send a response message indicating the status of the shipment by email or through the ACE Shipment Manager. A successful filing will receive an ITN as confirmation that the AES has accepted the EEI. A rejected filing will receive a rejection statement.
When completing the customs form(s), the mailer must include the ITN as described in IMM 527. The ITN is unique for every AES shipment and is applicable for multiple packages sent from one USPPI to one addressee when the mailer tenders the packages to the United States Postal Service on the same day (see IMM 524.1).
Note: If the AES is not functioning, call the U.S. Census Bureau’s toll-free information hotline at 800-549-0595, option 1. For more information on electronic filing, use option 3.
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2.5.4 AES Downtown Citation
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If electronic information filing is required, but AESDirect system is unavailable, the goods may be shipped but the customer is responsible for providing the appropriate AES Downtime Citation instead of an ITN.***
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2.5.5 AES Exemption
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[Add new item c. to read as follows:]
c. For items destined to APO, FPO, and DPO addresses, customers may apply “NOEEI 30.37(w)” regardless of value, provided an export license is not required (see 2.5.8).
2.5.6 Placement of ITN, AES Downtime Citation, or AES Exemption
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If no customs declaration form is required (e.g., items sent between the United States and Puerto Rico), no other action for recording the ITN or AES Downtime Citation on the package is required. However, when a shipment requires an ITN, AES Downtime Citation, or AES Exemption, it is the customer’s responsibility to legibly write the applicable ITN, AES Downtime Citation, or AES Exemption in the appropriate location on the customs form:
a. On PS Form 2976 — use block 8.
b. On PS Form 2976-A — use block 10.
c. On PS Form 2976-B, Priority Mail Express International Shipping Label and Customs Form — use block 3.
d. On PS Form 2976-R, USPS Customs Declaration and Dispatch Note — use block 13 for an ITN or AES Downtime Citation, and block 14 for an AES Exemption.
See IMM 123.12 for authorized editions of USPS-produced customs declaration forms.
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2.5.8 When an Export License Is Required
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When an export license is required under 2.5.7, a PS Form 2976-A or a PS Form 2976-B is always required. The applicable license number must appear in Block 16 of the PS Form 2976-A or Block 14 of the PS Form 2976-B, and an ITN or AES Downtime Citation must appear in block 10 of the PS Form 2976-A or Block 3 of the PS Form 2976-B. See IMM 520 and 530 for complete requirements.
In addition, it is the mailer’s responsibility to comply with the U.S. Census Bureau’s requirements for filing electronic export information, as described in 2.5.1 and 2.5.2.
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Although effective July 18, 2019, the Postal Service will incorporate these revisions into the next update of the online DMM, which is available via Postal Explorer® at pe.usps.com.
— Product Classification, Marketing, 7-18-19
