FltPlan.com has added capability to help customers comply with new Mexico National Institute of Immigration (INM) rules mandating Advanced Passenger Information System (APIS) manifests. The new rules require “submission of information within 30 minutes of departure or after the aircraft door is closed,” according to FltPlan president Ken Wilson.
To use the service, pilots will need to call FltPlan specialists on a telephone, after closing the aircraft’s door. This service cannot currently be done on the Internet. Specialists are available via phone “at all times,” Wilson said.
Cost of the new Mexico service is $200 per year, plus $20 per manifest ($40 for a round trip from the U.S. to Mexico). Users will also need to be subscribers to FltPlan’s eAPIS service, which costs $249 per year. According to FltPlan, fines for non-compliance can be as high as $5,000, and all aircraft types must comply with the new requirements.
The rationale behind the new requirements, according to FltPlan, is “to provide INM with an efficient method to collect Advanced Passenger Information. The solution will allow Mexican government and airport authorities to review passenger information even before aircraft land at their airport of destination. The Mexican Government is expected to benefit greatly from improved control of passengers as well as enhanced accounting for tariffs paid by inbound, outbound and transit passengers. INM believes that [the requirement] will have a positive impact on its border operations and will enhance Mexico's overall border security and control.” Wilson expects that there will probably be changes to interpretation and enforcement of the new Mexican process.
“FltPlan has had a successful eAPIS system in place for over five years,” Wilson said. “We were the first organization to be certified by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection for submitting eAPIS data. It was relatively easy for us to be able to switch over and work with the Mexican government. It also enables us to serve our customers with a low-cost solution without having them go to another third-party provider.”
FltPlan.com is exhibiting at NBAA's Schedulers & Dispatchers conference in New Orleans this week (Booth No. 134).
