Stupid TSA rule anyone know about this?

[kirama]

In a little less than 2 weeks our puppy will be shipped to San Francisco from Toronto- however it seems that in the beginning of February TSA has started requiring that puppies coming into the US have to be shipped through a 'customs service' or freight forwarding service'. Continental and NWA are aware of the policy and got letters from TSA, however Air Canada and United said they are shipping pets every day with no problem and have not received any notices from TSA. We are going to give it a try and use Air Canada, but I would feel a bit safer if we could find a customs broker to handle the paperwork so that we don't get stuck in customs in San Francisco. The problem is; the customs brokers I called for the most part won't work with an individual, only a company; and the one I found that would do it wanted $500 CD. Pet travel services want $250 and up, and we don't need their services; everything is taken care of- we just need to make sure he gets through customs. On another forum, a doodle breeder said she uses a customs broker in a different part of Canada for $35 per puppy but when I called them I kept getting transferred and finally ended up talking to some woman who had no idea what I was talking about. If anyone has any ideas about this I would love to hear them. TSA is supposed to exempt animals from their rule but who knows when that will be

[KingstonTodd]

Here is a list of brokers in California that service the SF airport. Air Canada still says we are good to ship Beck on Mar 2nd, but I will keep calling them in case they change their mind. There is nothing about this on the US customs website.

http://www.ipata.com/page.php?chkctr...ch=&rp=17&ca=0

PS. I am having this conversation on the forum instead of by email, since the issue may affect other Canadian breeders and if we find an answer it would be nice to have it here for everyone to read.

[kirama]

I am unclear on whether I can use a customs agent at the destination, I think it might require one in Toronto- but I'm can't find anything definitive.

[Maureen]

First of all, let me say that I'm really sorry this is happening!!
Now, my next question is, for your situation, what would a r/t ticket cost, to fly with the puppy in the cabin for either one of you? Would that help?
I know UNITED and Northwest both have enough flights that you could do this, right?

OR - what would it cost for Todd to drive to Detroit or Port Huron and carry the puppy into the US, and then ship him/her?

These are other ideas, I hope they help you with your particular situation. But I certainly understand this is an issue that affects all Canadian breeders, overall.

[KingstonTodd]

I checked into priceline and it's about 500$ to fly round trip, and I would have to stay overnight somewhere. Hopefully not in the terminal like Tom Hanks from Krackosia. It is not just an airline thing, but a customs and border control issue, so driving the puppy over is not a guarentee. If I say I am just going to visit Annmarie (since she lives a few hours away) and they enfore the law, I would have to stop at the border on my way back to Canada to show them the puppy is still with me, otherwise the same importing law applies and I should have had a commercial broker drive the puppy over the boarder, and I just broke the law!! EEK!. Its really crazy. Everyone involved thinks pets wil become exempt very soon, so lets hope. Air Canada Cargo is acting like the problem doesn't exist and are shipping (we have a flight booked), so maybe they are clearing customs it for us?

[kirama]

Originally Posted by Maureen

First of all, let me say that I'm really sorry this is happening!!
Now, my next question is, for your situation, what would a r/t ticket cost, to fly with the puppy in the cabin for either one of you? Would that help?
I know UNITED and Northwest both have enough flights that you could do this, right?

OR - what would it cost for Todd to drive to Detroit or Port Huron and carry the puppy into the US, and then ship him/her?

These are other ideas, I hope they help you with your particular situation. But I certainly understand this is an issue that affects all Canadian breeders, overall.

My husband suggested that I fly up to get the puppy, the problem is that there is a $175 charge on top of airfare for having the pet sit under your seat, also he crate we picked out is too big to fit under the seat...so that's probably not the easiest solution. I have made several inquires to customs brokers and 'known shippers' they have ranged from $300 CD to (sit down before you read this) $2,000 US and none of the quotes include shipping, crate or any transportation of puppy to the airport.... For now we are going to cross our fingers that Air Canada isn't affected by this.

[kirama]

I just found this on another dog website- apparently this 'rule' has been confirmed by a shipper out of Calgary:

Menzies Aviation - Calgary
Phone (403) 250-2033
(They handle almost all US carrier cargo out of calgary)
"Receiving Tendered Cargo (non-U.S. Origin shipments) All shipments accepted in non-US locations from shippers other than Regulated Agents or IATA-Approved Agents must be tendered by a Cargo Agent, Consolidator, Freight Forwarder, All-Cargo Aircraft Operator or All-Cargo Foreign Air Carrier. Shipments can no longer be accepted from an entity which does not meet one of these definitions including Live Animals and Human Remains"
Above is the excerpt from the TSA change 5 in effect as of 02/01/09. From the AOSSP.
This applies to all airlines that enter US airspace.

[Maureen]

Sounds like Air Canada is an approved Carrier....good news!

by the way, for anyone else's information, the in-cabin charge varies by Carrier. I use United, who charges a flat $100. Northwest used to charge $75 but that was a 4yrs ago, so I'm sure it has changed.

[kirama]

Originally Posted by Maureen

Sounds like Air Canada is an approved Carrier....good news!

I didn't know there was such a thing, but I'm hoping that will be the answer to this situation!

[Jac]

Well, from what I have read on the breeder's forum, even with an approved carrier, you need a cargo broker to do the paperwork at the airport or you may not get the pup.
This is a huge mess and now the cost has turned into usury...
Here's an idea...what does it take to qualify as a cargo broker? Anyone want to get licensed?
I am sorry you are going through this...I think it is going to be a nightmare for most puppy shippers. It looks like the restrictions go both ways (to and from Canada) so no one is exempt. Anyone driving a pup over the border for this has to register as a commercial carrier. Maybe this is a great new business ventrue for some enterprising doodle breeder...

[kirama]

The only case that I have heard of where an importer of a pup had to hire a customs broker was when the pup she told customs that the pup was valued at over $2,000. That's been a rule for awhile- dogs imported to the US for breeding or those with a stated value of over 2K require the use of a broker, that's a separate issue and the poster on the breeder forum apparently didn't know that was unrelated to the TSA rule. From what I can determine at this point airlines all received notice of this, but are interpreting it differently. Here is a link to the Air Canada memo http://www.aircanada.com/cargo/en/news/infocargo34.pdf It seems Air Canada and United have decided that this doesn't apply to live animal exports from Canada. They might get spanked by TSA sometime between now and when my puppy will be shipped, or they might not, it's hard to say- the real question is; if they are comfortable putting the puppy on the plane, how likely is it that customs is going to refuse to clear it? I called Air Canada in SF and they told me that pets shipped by individuals are still clearing customs with no problem.

As far as becoming a known shipper, there is a procedure for that it is listed on each airlines website. There are costs involved and the procedure for 'approval' varies from airline to airline. I like to err on the side of caution, so I have been trying to line up a reasonably priced shipper to handle this if that becomes necessary- but I have gotten quotes from a low of $300 to $2000. That does not include shipping, or a crate or transportation- just having some dork meet you at the airport and and the pup to the airline personnel and spend 5 minutes filling out a piece of paper. That is just plain robbery, unless the shipper is actually providing services (and some do) then I would think anything over $100 is just a rip-off