ACE CATAIR Updates: Entry Type 13, FY27 COBRA Fees, Section 338 Error

Key Points

• CBP published three ACE CATAIR updates on September 15, 2026, covering new error codes for Entry Type 13 (international mail), FY27 Customs COBRA user fees, and a Section 338 exemption error.
• New CATAIR Error Dictionary V54 adds seven error codes (867, 878-882) specific to the Entry Type 13 (ET 13) Test for international mail shipments, posted under Draft Chapters: Future Capabilities on CBP.gov.
• Updated CATAIR Entry Summary Create/Update V110 incorporates FY27 COBRA user fee amounts and limitations, effective for all importations on or after October 1, 2026, including summaries pre-filed before that date.
• Error Dictionary V53 adds error F884: exemption HTS 9903.03.05 cannot be claimed for Section 338 unless a dutiable Chapter 99 HTS is also reported on the same line; this is live in both CERT and PROD environments.
• ACE Certification experienced a standard invasive maintenance window on September 16, 2026, from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET.

On this page

1. What changed across the three CATAIR releases
2. Entry Type 13 Test: new error codes and what they mean
3. FY27 COBRA user fees: effective date and pre-filing rule
4. Section 338 exemption error F884: filing requirement
5. ACE CERT maintenance window
6. What filers should do now
7. Key references

On September 15, 2026, CBP released three separate CATAIR updates through its Cargo Systems Messaging Service, touching the Entry Type 13 mail test, FY27 customs user fees, and Section 338 tariff exemption filings. The links throughout this article go to the primary documents: the CSMS bulletins and CBP filing guides themselves. Read the source.

What changed across the three CATAIR releases

CBP's September 15 releases are distinct in scope but share a common thread: they all affect how entry summaries are validated in ACE. Filers, software developers, and compliance teams should treat each update separately because they target different entry types and different CATAIR document versions.

Entry Type 13 Test: new error codes and what they mean

The CSMS 69915001 update posts a revised ACE CATAIR Error Dictionary V54 under the Draft Chapters: Future Capabilities section on CBP.gov. All new errors are in support of the Entry Type 13 (ET 13) Test, which covers ACE processing of international mail shipments (INT-057, CBP-290). The seven new error codes are:

• 867 FINAL DELIV
• 878 MNFST COMP TYP NOT VALID FOR ENTRY TYP
• 879 MNFST COMP ISSUER MISSING
• 880 MNFST COMP ISSUER UNKNOWN
• 881 MNFST COMP ISSUER NOT ALLOWED FOR MOT
• 882 MNFST COMP ID NOT VALID FOR MOT

A pre-deployment support call (CSMS 69912280) was scheduled for September 15, 2026, to walk participants through the ET 13 implementation. If your software or filing workflow handles international mail entries, review V54 against your current manifest component and mode-of-transport logic before ET 13 moves to production.

FY27 COBRA user fees: effective date and pre-filing rule

CSMS 69915041 updates the ACE CATAIR Entry Summary Create/Update to versions V110 and V111, incorporating the new FY27 Customs COBRA user fee amounts and limitations. The critical date is October 1, 2026: the new fee schedule applies to all importations on or after that date. Importantly, if an entry summary is pre-filed before October 1, 2026, but the relevant entry date is on or after October 1, the new amounts still apply. Filers who routinely pre-file summaries should update their fee-calculation logic before September 30 to avoid submission errors or underpayment on early-filed summaries.

Section 338 exemption error F884: filing requirement

CSMS 69915227 adds a single new reject to ACE CATAIR Error Dictionary V53, which is now live in both CERTIFICATION and PRODUCTION environments:

F884 - EXEMPT HTS NOT ALLOWED FOR SECTION 338: Use of exemption HTS 9903.03.05 for Section 338 is not allowed because there is no appropriate dutiable Chapter 99 HTS reported on the line.

In plain terms: you cannot claim the Section 338 exemption under HTS 9903.03.05 on a line unless that same line also carries a dutiable Chapter 99 HTS. Any summary already filed in production that relies on 9903.03.05 without a corresponding dutiable CH99 HTS will generate this fatal error. Filers handling Section 338 tariff lines should audit open and upcoming summaries immediately.

ACE CERT maintenance window

Per CSMS 69913228, the ACE Certification environment was taken offline for a standard invasive maintenance window on September 16, 2026, from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET. This is a CERT-only outage and does not affect the Production environment, but testing teams should account for the downtime window when scheduling regression testing related to the CATAIR updates above.

What filers should do now

• Download and review CATAIR Error Dictionary V54 from CBP.gov's Draft Chapters section and update any software that generates international mail (Entry Type 13) manifests to handle error codes 867 and 878-882.
• Update your COBRA user fee calculation tables to the FY27 amounts before September 30, 2026, and confirm that pre-filed summaries with entry dates on or after October 1 use the new fee schedule.
• Audit all open entry summary lines claiming HTS 9903.03.05 for Section 338 to confirm each line also reports a dutiable Chapter 99 HTS; correct any lines that would trigger error F884 before submission.
• Reschedule any ACE CERT testing that was planned during the September 16 maintenance window, and verify that your V53 and V110/V111 CATAIR integrations pass validation in CERT before promoting to PROD.

Key references

• CSMS 69915001: ACE CATAIR Error Dictionary V54, Entry Type 13 Test error codes (867, 878-882)
• CSMS 69915227: ACE CATAIR Error Dictionary V53, new error F884 for Section 338 exemption HTS 9903.03.05
• CSMS 69915041: ACE CATAIR Entry Summary Create/Update V110/V111, FY27 COBRA user fees effective October 1, 2026
• CSMS 69912280: Pre-deployment support call for Entry Type 13 Test in ACE (INT-057, CBP-290)
• CSMS 69913228: ACE Certification maintenance window, September 16, 2026, 5:00-8:00 p.m. ET
• CBP.gov ACE CATAIR chapters: current and draft CATAIR documentation library