DEA data flag in ACE now rejects entries, not just warns
CBP title: U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency Implementation Guide Moved from Draft Section of CBP.gov
This message is from April 3, 2026. Later CSMS messages may have changed it. See the latest trade news
What did CBP announce?
CBP announced that the DEA Implementation Guide moved to the production-ready section of CBP.gov after the DEA message set went live in ACE on March 21, 2026. CBP said the new DE3 flag would first enforce with a WARNING severity, then move to a REJECT severity on May 4, 2026, a date changed from an earlier CSMS. This affects ACE entry filings that require DEA data elements.
What is Allied's position?
This message is about a technical ACE data requirement for entries involving DEA-regulated commodities. Since May 4, 2026 passed, entries missing the required DEA DE3 data are now rejected in ACE rather than just flagged. We apply this requirement to entries we file that involve DEA-regulated goods. Clients who import such goods should confirm with us that their DEA data is complete to avoid entry rejections; other clients do not need to act.
General information, not legal advice.
What does the CBP message say?
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Implementation Guide (IG) can now be found in the “Implementation Guidelines: Ready for Coding” section of CBP.gov: https://www.cbp.gov/trade/automated/catair
The DEA message set was deployed to Customs and Border Protection’s Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) Production Environment on March 21, 2026. The new DE3 flag is being enforced with a WARNING severity (see CSMS 67396599 (https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDHSCBP/bulletins/40463f7)).
NOTE: The enforcement of the DE3 flag will change to a REJECT severity on May 4, 2026 (this date is a change from the date given in CSMS 67396599 (https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDHSCBP/bulletins/40463f7)).
For questions about the DEA IG, please contact DEA at: DRI@dea.gov (mailto:DRI@dea.gov).
For questions about this CSMS, please contact: CREM@cbp.dhs.gov (mailto:CREM@cbp.dhs.gov).
Related Messages: 67396599, 68034342