ICS2: DEADLINES AND IMPLICATIONS ON CARRIERS
For one year now, all the European actors of the Express and Postal air transport are concerned by ICS2 (“Import control System 2”). In exactly one year, these measures will be applied to other Express and Postal operations as well as to ordinary air transport imports; while finally in two years, all carriers will have to acclimatize to ICS2. Customs Bridge takes this opportunity to review the new decision and its implications.
What is ICS?
The import control system was born in 2011 as a global security response to the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States. The objective was to further control imports into the European Union through an online declaration prior to the arrival of the goods on the territory of the 27.
However, in a decade, the European context and world trade have evolved enormously. The objective of ICS2 is therefore to replace ICS1 to make it more efficient, in particular by centralizing data at the European level instead of the national level.
What are these new measures?
Through the entry summary declaration (ESD) and depending on their type, carriers will have to provide different data on the nature of the goods, their origins and the actors involved in their trade.
The main consequence is the extension of the 6-digit HS code declaration to new actors. They will thus have to make a customs classification for each of their imports into the EU, as soon as ICS2 comes into force.
What are the implications for companies?
Logically, companies will have to train their personnel on the European Union’s dedicated platforms and customs requirements. It will also be essential for them to make the exchange of information within their company more fluid and to reflect on the logistics strategy to adopt. This measure may lead to an increase in costs for companies, if only because of the time spent filling out administrative formalities.
