Questions about the new Temporary Storage Declaration (ATO)

The most important changes have been explained by Customs and Portbase in an information meeting. You can rewatch it here:

Please note: in this meeting the old deadline is discussed; the correct deadline is 16 November 2026.

Below you will find answers to the questions asked during this meeting.

What should I do when I experience a disruption?

Disruptions in the Customs process are reported by the National Helpdesk Customs and EU portals | National Helpdesk Customs (NHD). Subscribe to disruption and maintenance messages so that you are informed immediately. When contacting Customs, an MRN or LRN number is mandatory; you can find this in the service.

Portbase actively monitors disruptions or delays. As soon as we detect them, we report this in the web screens of the service Cargo Declaration Import. At the same time, together with Customs, we immediately investigate what the cause is.

We report disruptions within the Portbase environment on status.portbase.com. We advise you to also subscribe to the notifications.

Are you experiencing a disruption that is not mentioned by the National Helpdesk Customs or on status.portbase.com? Then contact our Customer Service department.

What should I do when the ENS is not done via Portbase?

Which additional data must be included in the IFTMCS file?

An overview of this data can be found on the Support page. View here the full IFTMCS specifications for organisations that do not submit the ENS via Portbase.

How does the pilot phase process work for us?

For parties that do not submit the ENS via Portbase, the pilot runs in exactly the same way. The only difference is that these parties must process the received ENS MRN in the TSD.

Permit for maintaining a regular shipping service (RSS)

Does a declarant also have to submit an ATO for Union goods?

Yes, when goods are brought in by sea, an ATO must be submitted in order to place the goods in temporary storage. This also applies to Union goods.

Companies that hold a ‘Permit for maintaining a regular shipping service (RSS)’ are exempted from the obligation to submit an ATO for Union goods.

Do you use Cargo Declaration Import via Portbase to submit the ATO? Then nothing changes in the current way of working.

For the benefit of the overall Port Community System (PCS), it is crucial that the ATO data is still submitted. This is necessary for other PCS services that support automated port processes. This prevents delays in logistical handling. Portbase no longer converts the received data into an ATO for submission to Customs.

How do we indicate to Portbase that the ATO falls under a regular shipping service (RSS) permit?

Web screens: at the start of the filing you tick ‘NONE’
IFTMCS: Qualifier ACD / FTX+ACD+NONE
API: Portbase Port Visit API

The HS Code is not mandatory for Union goods that arrive via a regular shipping service (RSS). How should this be handled in the IFTMCS?

In this case, the HS code does not need to be included.

Can I specify multiple discharge terminals under one B/L?

Unfortunately, this is not possible in our service Cargo Declaration Import. The B/L will have to be split into one terminal per B/L.