US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is clamping down on the use of vague descriptions of shipments submitted through the Air Cargo Advance Screening (ACAS).

CBP said that from October 7, carriers and other parties electing to file ACAS data to CBP are required to provide a precise description of the cargo, according to London's Air Cargo News.

Until then, a warning period has been put in place. Daily warning messages will be sent to the main ACAS contact each day with a summary of each vague description from the previous day.

As an example, this means that descriptions such as "gift", "daily necessities", "accessories", "parts" and "consolidated" will no longer be accepted.

"ACAS filers are expected to process these warning and rejection notifications and work to correct the issue with the shipper and bill of lading issuer for compliance on that shipment," CBP said.

"ACAS filers, whether air carriers or parties electing to file, are expected to screen data for compliance with cargo declaration regulations.

"Corrective action is expected immediately. If CBP identifies any enforcement concerns, CBP may take additional actions."

Qantas Freight said that from October 7 any non-compliant, vague descriptors will be rejected, and freight will not be loaded at origin until the cargo descriptions have been amended to be compliant.

The last few months have seen the US become increasingly strict on imports into the country.

In July, the US began a clamp down on e-commerce shipments when it suspended "multiple customs brokers" from its Entry Type 86 Test programme that covers the duty-free import of shipments worth less than US$800 into the US.

The US said that over the last 10 years the number of shipments entering the US claiming the de minimis $800 exemption has increased significantly, from approximately 140 million a year to more than 1 billion a year.