CSMS Message: 16-000503

To: All Filers Saturday June 18, 2016

From: Food & Drug Administration
Subject: FDA Interoperability Web Service (IWS) on Saturday June 18, 2016

FDA's Interoperability Web Service (IWS) will be down for maintenance on Saturday June 18, 2016 starting at approximately 3:00 AM, and finished by 5:00 AM. As a result, FDA will be operating under the prior notice scenario 1 contingency. During the period when IWS is down and Automated Commercial Systems (ACS), Automated Commercial Environment (ACE), Prior Notice System Interface (PNSI), and FDA's Operational and Administrative System for Import Support (OASIS) will be operational. However, the IWS downtime will prevent submitters who filed in ACE via ABI from receiving prior notice confirmation and would prevent CBP from auto-checking the prior notice confirmation for ACE ABI filers. If prior notice has not already been submitted, ABI filers may decide to wait out the OASIS downtimes if they determine that the timeliness of prior notice will not be adversely affected. Filers who choose this option should understand that they remain responsible under section 801(m) of the act and under the prior notice final rule for filing timely prior notice. ACE ABI transmissions received by FDA during the downtime will be queued and processed once the maintenance is completed. ACE Prior notice (PN) confirmation numbers will not be transmitted back to filers during the downtime.

Alternatively, filers may submit prior notice via PNSI or ACS including the WP function. CBP will be able to auto-check the prior notice confirmation for ACS and PNSI transmissions.

If prior notice has already been submitted via ABI/ACS/ACE prior to the interface outage, and confirmation has already been received, the submitter may proceed with prior notice using the standard process. If prior notice has already been submitted via ACE and confirmation has not been received prior to the interface outage, FDA and CBP recommend that, rather than resubmitting via PNSI, submitters should provide to CBP officers, at the time of cargo release, an endorsed (signed) copy of the ABI transmission or some other evidence adequate to show that prior notice has been submitted via ACE. If you have any questions during this downtime, please contact the FDA's Division of Food Defense Targeting at (866) 521-2297.

During this two hour maintenance period, ACE 801(a) entries and associated 801(a) messaging will not flow between CBP and FDA. Entries will be processed and messaging sent back after the maintenance period has completed.