Regulatory Changes - ICS2

9th January 2024

The EU launched phase 2 of their Import Control System (ICS2) regulations 1st March 2023. These regulations are now beginning to be intensified by both the EU and carriers.

What is ICS2?
As stated on the European Commission's official website: “The EU's new advanced cargo information system ICS2 supports the implementation of this new customs safety and security regulatory regime aimed to better protect the single market and EU citizens. It will collect data about all goods entering the EU prior to their arrival. Economic Operators (EOs) will have to declare safety and security data to ICS2, through the Entry Summary Declaration (ENS). The obligation to start filing such declarations will not be the same for all EOs. It will depend on the type of services that they provide in the international movement of goods and is linked to the three release dates of ICS2 (15 March 2021, 1 March 2023, and 1 March 2024).”

ICS2 - europa.eu

The following data is now required:

  • Goods description
  • HS code
  • EORI number
  • Shipper name
  • Shipper Address
  • Recipient name
  • Recipient address
  • Number of packages
  • Weight & quantity
  • Waybill identifier
     

What are InXpress doing to help customers be compliant?
To reduce the risk to our customer’s shipments, we have changed the workflow on webship+, our shipping platform. This change guides customers and helps them to create Commercial Invoices, providing the above-listed data. Customers also have the option to upload any further documentation that they need to.
 

Frequently asked questions
 

Will this affect shipments to the EU territories only?
No. This will affect all international shipments. As stated by the EU, any shipment destined for an EU territory or passing through any EU territory, or via any carrier hub in the EU (for example, 82% of International shipments will move via an EU carrier hub before moving to America’s destination), will be subject to ICS2 regulations. For this reason, InXpress have applied these changes to all international shipments in webship+.

Will other shippers be subject to these regulations?
Yes, this is an EU legislation change and applies to all shippers no matter which platform they ship from.

Are other carriers requiring their customers to complete in full? 
Yes, this is an EU legislation change and applies to all shippers no matter which platform they ship from.

What is InXpress doing to support customers in this change?
Training and guidance are available to show you how you can automate your Commercial Invoice generation in webship+. Please contact your local office if you need any additional support.

What are the risks if we do not comply?
The EU has stated that they will stop any shipments that travel into or through the EU territories and do not comply with the regulations. This means that the shipment will be stopped and returned to the sender. This will elicit outgoing shipment and incoming shipment charges and potentially a fine. We have therefore implemented the above mentioned workflow change to mitigate the risk to all InXpress customers.

InXpress has a guidance video available in webship+ to help customers to automate and speed up data entry required by ICS2 legislation. As always, contact your local office if you need any additional support.