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Your actions under Japan’s Advance Filing Rules on Maritime Container Cargo Information (the Pre-departure filing)

2016年10月20日

October 2016

To whom it may concern,

Reminder: Your actions to report House B/L information under Japan’s Advance Filing Rules on Maritime Container Cargo Information (the Pre-departure filing)

Japan Customs has implemented the Advance Filing Rules (AFR) since March 2014 to enhance the security level of international logistics and to prevent terrorism by screening detailed maritime container cargo information submitted at an early stage.

As demonstrated by the series of terror attacks in Paris, France, in November 2015, and the terrorist attack in Dhaka, Bangladesh, in July this year, which also targeted Japanese, etc., the current situation of terrorism is very severe and the threat of terrorism to Japan has been realized.

Furthermore, the Rugby World Cup is scheduled in Japan during the year 2019 and the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games are to be held in 2020. Hence, the government of Japan as a whole has been making every effort to tackle terrorism and Japan Customs also needs to strengthen its measures against terrorism.

Japan Customs is sending this letter to you to remind you, forwarder, to adequately execute the obligation of AFR stipulated by the Japan’s Customs Law, where a forwarder, who intends to load cargo onto a maritime container vessel scheduled to enter a port of Japan, shall file cargo information based on house B/L electronically via the NACCS (Japan’s single window system) to Japan Customs at latest 24 hours before departure of the vessel from the port of loading, in principal.

Under the AFR, a penalty could be imposed according to the Japan’s Customs Law if you filed no, delayed or false cargo information by that filing deadline. Based on the Law, any maritime container cargo without the filing of AFR cannot be unloaded on any port of Japan unless necessary actions are carried out. For your reference, please find the attached paper on the method to connect to the NACCS and the following Japan Customs’ website on AFR which contains explanatory materials:
http://www.customs.go.jp/english/summary/advance/index.htm.

If you have any inquiry, please contact us at the following address: JapanCustoms-afr@mof.go.jp.

Japan Customs thanks for your continuous understanding on this matter.

Sincerely yours

Japan Customs