Export Declarations by Shippers

You use this process to create export declarations for customs-relevant freight documents that contain freight units derived from delivery-based transportation requirements (DTRs). Note that export declarations are created at the pre-carriage stage of a freight document.

To communicate with the customs authorities, you can use an integrated customs management application, for example, SAP Global Trade Services. When you request an export declaration for a freight document, the customs management application automatically creates the export declaration and handles the customs processes.

Prerequisites

You have integrated SAP TM with SAP Global Trade Services or a similar customs management application.
Note that the process below describes the integration of SAP TM with SAP Global Trade Services.

For more information, see Integration with SAP Global Trade Services.
You have defined a customs activity that controls customs handling for export declarations and assigned the customs activity to a customs profile. You have assigned the customs profile to the relevant freight document types.
You make these settings in Customizing for Transportation Management as follows:
- You define activities and profiles under Basic Functions Global Trade Define Customs Activities and Profiles .
  For export declarations by shippers, you can use standard customs activity EXP_EU, which is assigned to standard customs profile GT_OUTBOUND.
  
  Note that you also have to define customs statuses and cumulated customs statuses. You assign the customs statuses to the customs activity. You can also assign block reasons to cumulated customs statuses.
  
  For more information, see Configuration of Customs Processing.
- You assign a customs profile to a freight order type under Freight Order Management Freight Order Define Freight Order Types .
- You assign a customs profile to a freight booking type under Freight Order Management Freight Booking Define Freight Booking Types .
SAP TM has created a delivery-based transportation requirement (DTR) based on a delivery received from SAP ERP.
For more information about ERP delivery integration, see Integration of ERP Orders and Deliveries in Transp. Planning.

Process

You carry out transportation planning for freight units derived from a DTR.
When you save the resulting freight document, the system does the following:
1. Checks whether a customs profile is assigned to the freight document type (for example, standard customs profile for export GT_OUTBOUND)
2. Determines which customs activities are assigned to the customs profile (for example, standard customs activity for export EXP_EU)
3. Runs the customs relevance check that is assigned to the customs activity (for example, standard customs relevance check EXP_EU)
In the freight document, the system displays the customs activity in the Customs Activity group box on the Customs tab page. If the freight document is customs-relevant, the system selects the Customs Relevance checkbox for the customs activity. The system displays the corresponding customs status for the check result at header level (that is, on the Customs tab page and Statuses tab page) and at item level (on the Customs tab page in the item details).

Note the following:
- If you have assigned a block reason to the relevant cumulated customs status, the system sets an execution block in the freight document.
- If the freight document is not customs-relevant, you can select the Customs Relevance checkbox manually and then proceed with the next steps.
For information about the standard customs relevance checks, see Customs Relevance Check.
You create customs groups in the freight document.
You create customs groups by selecting the customs activity in the Customs Activity group box on the Customs tab page and choosing the Build Customs Groups pushbutton. The system groups the items in the freight document according to the grouping strategy assigned to the customs activity (for example, standard grouping strategy EXP_CONS that is assigned to customs activity EXP_EU).

For information about the standard grouping strategies, see Customs Groups.

You display the customs groups by selecting the customs activity in the Customs Activity group box. The system displays the customs groups in the Item Groups table. You display the items assigned to each customs group by selecting the customs group and choosing the Show Assigned Items pushbutton.

The customs status of each customs group is displayed in the Status field in the Item Groups table. At this point, each customs group has the customs status that relates to the check result (for example, “Customs-Relevant”). The system displays the relevant cumulated customs status at header and item level in the freight document. If you have assigned a block reason to the cumulated customs status, the system sets an execution block in the freight document.
You create an export declaration.
You trigger the creation of an export declaration for one or more customs groups by selecting the customs groups in the Item Groups table and choosing the Create Export Declaration pushbutton. When you save the freight document, the system triggers the Request Export Declaration (ExportDeclarationSUITERequest_Out) enterprise service. SAP TM sends the request to SAP Global Trade Services.

Before the system sends the request, it checks if the freight document has the required trigger status, that is, the execution status specified in the customs activity. If required, you must set the corresponding execution status and save the freight document again.

The system sets the customs status of the customs groups (for example, “Export Declaration Requested”). The system displays the relevant cumulated customs status at header and item level in the freight document. If you have assigned a block reason to the cumulated customs status, the system sets an execution block in the freight document.

SAP TM fixes the freight document. Changes to the freight document are not recommended at this point, but you can still cancel the export declaration.
SAP Global Trade Services creates the export declarations and submits them to the customs authorities.
When SAP Global Trade Services receives an export confirmation from the customs authorities, it sends a confirmation to SAP TM that contains the following information:
- Customs management document number
  This is the document ID provided by the customs management application that you use to communicate with the customs authorities.
- Customs reference number
  In the European Union, for example, this is the movement reference number (MRN).
- Indicator that shows the status of customs processing
  The following values are possible:
  - Released: Customs clearance has been obtained for a customs group.
  - Canceled: An export declaration has been successfully canceled.
  - Fallback: A fallback procedure is in use (for example, if the customs authorities' IT systems or processes have failed and communication has to be carried out using printouts instead of electronic messages). The status of the customs groups and freight document does not change.
SAP TM receives the confirmation from SAP Global Trade Services.
The Change Transportation Order Based on Export Declaration Confirmation (ExportDeclarationSUITEConfirmation_In) enterprise service receives the confirmation from SAP Global Trade Services.

If customs has approved an export declaration for a particular customs group, the system sets the corresponding customs status (for example, “Export Declaration Approved”). The system displays the relevant cumulated customs status at header and item level. If you have not assigned a block reason to the new cumulated customs status, the system resets any existing blocks.

Result

As soon as customs clearance has been obtained for all customs groups and all execution blocks have been reset, the system unfixes the freight document and the goods can be transported. The cumulated customs status, customs management document number (that is, export declaration ID), and the customs reference number are displayed on the Customs tab page in the freight document.

If you subsequently want to cancel an export declaration, you select the relevant customs group on the Customs tab page in the freight document and choose the Cancel Customs Declaration pushbutton. SAP TM sends a cancellation request to SAP Global Trade Services using the Request Export Declaration Cancellation (ExportDeclarationSUITECancellationRequest_Out) enterprise service. SAP TM sets the corresponding customs status (for example, “Export Declaration Cancellation Requested”). If you have assigned a block reason to the relevant cumulated customs status, the system sets an execution block in the freight document. As soon as SAP Global Trade Services has confirmed the cancellation, SAP TM updates the customs statuses accordingly.

Note that export declaration documents are stored in the SAP Global Trade Services system. SAP Global Trade Services can send an export declaration document by e-mail to an SAP TM user.