On July 25, 2018, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released proposed updates to the Minimum Security Criteria (MSC) for the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (CTPAT) to participants of the program. The updated MSC are the result of a working group formed in 2016 under the Customs Commercial Operations Advisory Committee (COAC). CBP’s objective in updating the MSC is “to ensure that [CTPAT] is reflective of CBP’s overall mission, the current supply chain environment and the threats that the global supply chain faces today.”
The updated MSC address a number of supply chain security issues, including:
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Security measures to counter agricultural pests and diseases / personnel issues;
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Cybersecurity issues;
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Non-IT security technology;
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Prevention of money laundering and terrorism financing issues / risk;
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High security seals and highway carrier issues; and
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Security management and administration.
After a review and feedback period expected to last approximately three months, CBP will finalize the MSC based on guidance from CTPAT members and COAC, and then post the new criteria to the CTPAT Minimum Security Criteria and Guidelines webpage. A phased in implementation period is expected during 2019 with adherence in early 2020.
For further details, the COAC August 1, 2018 Trusted Trader Subcommittee Executive Summary and COAC Minimum Security Criteria external issue paper may be found at the following links on CBP’s website:
https://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/assets/documents/2018-Jul/coac-msc-update-august-2018.pdf
