Who?
Postal operators, express and air carriers and freight forwarders.
When?
The second release becomes effective on 1 March 2023.
Learn more about the ICS2 Release 2 go-live procedure for Economic Operators here.
You can also find further details about the transition from ICS2 Release 1 to Release 2 here.
To make sure that the security and safety of the EU is maintained across the EU external border it is necessary to make an adjustment in the coordinated and gradual approach for deployment of the ICS2 Release 2, described in the “Transition from ICS2 Release 1 to Release 2 strategy”. The change affects the air carriers operating direct flights from third countries into Member States which have been granted the derogation to connect to ICS2 Release 2 central system until 30 June 2023 (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, France, Greece, Croatia, Luxemburg, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Sweden).
How?
Operators have to complete the ENS dataset for all goods in air transport.
More precisely:
All goods transported by air in postal, express and general cargo consignments will be subject, in addition to pre-loading filing requirements, to complete pre-arrival ENS data requirements.
Further ICS2 project documentation for Release 2 can be consulted here
Important to note that new data requirements will enter into force on 1 March 2023, with the launch of ICS2 Release 2, as set by the Annex B of the Union Customs Code Implementing Act & Delegating Act. Declarants should pay particular attention to certain new data requirements. Notably, they will have a legal obligation to provide in the ENS particulars:
- the HS commodity code (6 digit) of the goods of a commercial nature (i.e. B2B and B2C): The Combined Nomenclature
- the EORI of the consignee established in the EU, if such number was assigned to this party. Parties need to make their EORI number available to the ENS declarant. The EORI number can be validated at the following webservice of the EU Commission, in order to be sure that the data is correct: EOS What’s new (europa.eu)
Adequate descriptions of goods in a plain language and precise enough for the customs authorities to be able to identify the goods, is also very important. Please consult the ‘Unacceptable goods descriptions guidance’ available at Import Control System 2 – Release 1 (europa.eu).
It is thus very important that declarants ensure that all required information is obtained from their customers.
The EU customs authorities may reject ENS declarations in the case of lack of complete data or issue risk mitigating referrals in the pre-arrival phase requesting the declarant to provide the necessary data, for example in the case data will not be accurate. This may create delays in processing of the ENS upon the arrival of the consignments and in the entry process, as the risk mitigating referrals must be answered and requested information must be provided before the risk assessment can resume. Customs may also decide to impose administrative sanctions for non-compliance with data requirements.