CBP ACE Messaging Service

GUIDANCE: Recommended Submission of Spreadsheets for Entry Changes Being Protested

The purpose of this CBP ACE Messaging Service (CAMS) message is to provide the Centers of Excellence and Expertise (Centers) with information concerning additional data that may be provided with protest submissions and to provide reminders about protest decisions and issuing refunds to the appropriate party.

Over the past two years, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has seen a marked increase in the number of protest filings. To assist the Center with processing protests, CBP is recommending that protest filers upload a spreadsheet into the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) Protest Module containing certain data elements for the Center’s use in mass updating the entry summaries for approved protests. A Cargo Systems Messaging Service (CSMS) message will be issued to the trade should the trade community decide to provide a spreadsheet with their protest.

The spreadsheet submission is being used by some trade entities and will allow a more streamlined process to make changes to the entries associated with an approved protest. It is recommended that Center personnel spot check a few of the entries on the spreadsheet to confirm that the refund is approved for the protested reason. Protest filers are still required to provide the ‘Reason for Protest’, a narrative that is specific, clear, and concise as to the overall claim of the protest. The spreadsheet is not required to be submitted with the protest; however, CBP highly recommends that the trade community submit a spreadsheet to assist the Center. As such, Center personnel should use discretion when asking protest filers to provide spreadsheets, and not requesting spreadsheets for protests with minimal entry lines. Although the spreadsheet would be helpful, the Center may not require the trade community to provide a spreadsheet in order to process their protest claim.

The spreadsheet should be uploaded into the ACE Protest Module using MS Excel, CSV, or TXT format and be titled “Protest Details Spreadsheet”. This will allow the spreadsheet to be easily identified from other supporting documentation in the Protest Module. Protests filed in paper with a spreadsheet at the Port should be uploaded and titled the same way.

The first four columns on the spreadsheet will remain static. These first four spreadsheet column headings will contain the Entry Number in the first column, the Entry Line Number in the second column, the original entry data that is being protested (Change From) in the third column, and the new change based on the protest (Change To) in the fourth column. Filers may add additional columns of information after column four if needed. Additionally, since each Center specializes in separate industries, the Center may request additional data in order to identify required information to expedite protest processing.

When processing protests, decisions should be concise and explain to the protestant the reason for the decision. Protest reviewers should not include remarks and/or information that should not be made available to the trade community, such as QUICS messages in the decision. Simply state the reason for the denial. In addition, it is imperative that the ‘Refund C/O Number’ field, if populated on an approved protest, be input on the liquidation record for each entry in the ‘C/O 3rd Party IR’ field for that protest. This ensures that the refund is routed to the correct party.

Questions concerning protests should be directed to ot-protest@cbp.dhs.gov.