Cathay Cargo continues its pioneering adoption of IATA’s ONE Record technology by becoming the first airline to introduce real-time Customs clearance updates to customers, bringing greater visibility and efficiency to the air-cargo shipment journey.

The new development adds Customs authorities as additional air-cargo stakeholders into Cathay Cargo’s real-time communications with customers based on the IATA ONE Record data protocol, and will be available to customers that are subscribed to the EzyCargo platform, or those who already have direct ONE Record API links to Cathay Cargo’s systems.

To enhance security measures, many Customs authorities had introduced PLACI (pre-load advanced cargo information), which means that shipments cannot be loaded until the destination Customs authority has given its permission. Similarly, many authorities require another layer of approval before releasing shipments after arrival or may carry out inspections, delaying release.

Previously, this information was forwarded manually by ground-handling agents, who would relay it to airlines, who in turn would notify customers. Being able to access these updates independently, and in real time, enables forwarders to get ahead by taking any appropriate remedial actions, or work around delays from Customs inspections.

“At Cathay Cargo, we understand the importance of encouraging the participation of all industry stakeholders in the IATA ONE Record, to increase the transparency and data connectivity of air cargo,” says Cathay General Manager Cargo Commercial James Evans. “Being able to see live updates from customs authorities adds another layer of transparency to the digital cargo journey for freight forwarders.”

The current scope of the new initiative will give users clearance status from Customs authorities including Europe (under the ICS2 Import Control System), the US, Canada and the United Arab Emirates. The statuses will be treated as ONE Record “Logistic Events”, which are standard data items.

Statuses include: “Pending” (when the PLACI is not yet sent to Customs); “Sent” (when it is); “Assessment in progress”; “Accept – OK” (when the shipment can be loaded); and “Cannot load onboard” (if there is an issue). Customers will know if their shipment is still pending, being assessed, is permitted to be loaded or not, and on arrival if a shipment is being held for inspection or has been released for collection.