On June 1^st, 2018, the China Customs Advance Manifest (CCAM) regulation went live. All shippers and parties with export cargo to China are required to comply with these updated regulatory requirements.

China Customs has published a clear, specific format regarding the enterprise codes for both shippers and consignees. For a Chinese mainland company as consignee, parties must provide a Uniform Social Credit Identification (USCI) code in their Shipping Instruction (SI) for the Consignee’s Company Code. The required entry format is “USCI+code”.

For a New Zealand company as consignor, parties must provide a COMPANY NUMBER in their SI for the Consignee’s Company Code. The required entry format is “COMPANY NUMBER +code. Please be advised that for New Zealand shippers, the company number can be any legally registered number.

For an Australian company as consignor, parties must provide the ABN number in their SI for the Consignor’s Company Code. The required entry format is “ABN+code”.

Regarding the deadline for amendments to a Bill of Lading, please ensure that any amendments for cargo destined to China are submitted 26 hours prior to vessel arrival at the compliance load port. Any amendments received after this deadline will be subject to approval from destination, resulting in a longer turnaround.

Customers requesting a Switch Bill of Lading must also submit any amendments 26 hours prior to vessel arrival at compliance load port before the Advanced Manifest is submitted.