Advance Commercial Information - Air Mode

Data Requirements

Air Conveyance Report – SO794

The air carrier, or a representative, prepares and transmits a Conveyance Report (SO794) to the CBSA through Electronic Data Interchange (EDI). The Conveyance Report must be transmitted electronically to the CBSA at least four hours prior to arrival in Canada. If the flight is less than four hours in duration, the Conveyance Report must be transmitted to the CBSA before the aircraft's time of departure from the foreign airport.

In this section you will find information regarding:

• Conveyance Reference Number
• Various ACI Air Circumstances
• First Point of Arrival (FPOA) and Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA) Accuracy
• Code-share Agreements
• Interline Agreements  

Conveyance Reference Number (CRN)

The Conveyance Reference Number (CRN) is a key data element that will be used to link the Conveyance Report to its associated Air Cargo Reports and/or Split Shipment Cargo Reports if applicable. The format of the CRN consists of the flight number plus the date of departure (YYMMDD), created by the carrier.

For example, if flight XX123 makes its continuous journey to Canada on December 12, 2005, the CRN would be XX123051212.

The CRN must be provided on all transmitted Air Cargo Reports unless transmitting a Split Shipment Report. The carrier must assign and communicate the CRN to all parties transmitting Air Cargo or Split Shipment Reports well in advance so that the Air Cargo Reports can be transmitted according to ACI timeframes.

Note: the Conveyance Reference Number may be re-used after a period of one year.

Various ACI Air Circumstances

• Empty aircraft
  ACI conveyance information is not required for empty aircraft.
• Aircraft making emergency/forced landings at a Canadian airport
  For aircrafts originally scheduled to arrive in Canada but that have to land at another airport in Canada due to unforeseen circumstances, an update of the Conveyance, Cargo and Supplementary Cargo Reports for the flight with the new location is required.
  
  For aircrafts destined outside of Canada but that have to land at a Canadian airport due to unforeseen circumstances, ACI information is not a requirement. A review of the paperwork, for health, safety, and security risk assessment, may be conducted on board the aircraft upon arrival.
• A shipment needs to change planes after ACI data has been transmitted
  If the new flight was known at that time, the air carrier would send a change request to the Air Cargo Report, indicating the new flight, Conveyance Reference Number. If the air carrier does not know the new flight, they will need to cancel the Air Cargo Report before arrival and transmit a new original Air Cargo Report when the flight is known.
• Aircraft stopping at a Canadian airport for fuel
  Aircrafts carrying commercial cargo not destined for Canada but whose First Point of Arrival (FPOA) is Canada for refueling purposes must respect the ACI data and timeframe requirements. For example, Gander to the United States or Gander to Montréal must meet the ACI requirements for FROB and import.
  • Note: Canadian and foreign military aircrafts carrying military cargo that stop for fuel in Canada are exempt from this requirement.

First Point of Arrival (FPOA) and Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA) Accuracy

The carrier will be required to transmit a change to the Conveyance Report to amend the FPOA and/or Estimated Date and Time of Arrival (ETA), when there is an unscheduled re-route or change to the ETA greater than 30 minutes.

Note: If the ETA varies by 30 minutes or less than what was originally transmitted, a change to the Conveyance Report reflecting the new ETA is not required. However, CBSA may send a Risk Assessment Notice at any time up to the ETA as transmitted on the Conveyance Report. Therefore, goods are not authorized to move from the warehouse prior to the ETA provided on the Conveyance Report.

Code-share Agreements

This is an agreement between multiple airlines to share one aircraft with only one Conveyance Report required for each code-share flight. The airline operating the aircraft is the transporting carrier and is responsible for submitting the Conveyance Report and Air Cargo Reports for its own cargo. The airlines that share the transporting carriers' aircraft will file their own Air Cargo Report using their own air waybill number and flight number.

Carriers involved in code-share agreements must note the Conveyance Reference Number of the transporting carrier on their Air Cargo Report because this acts as the link for all Cargo Reports to the Conveyance Report.

Interline Agreements

An interline movement exists when a transporting carrier enters into an agreement with other airlines to move their cargo on their behalf. The transporting carrier is responsible for submitting the Conveyance Report and Air Cargo Reports for all shipments on board the aircraft.