The importer is legally responsible for the filing but usually delegates it to its agent, a customs broker or forwarder, who assembles supplier, stuffing, and routing data scattered across the booking and files the importer's data elements no later than 24 hours before the cargo is laden aboard the vessel at the foreign port. CBP may assess liquidated damages of $5,000 per violation against the importer's bond for a late, inaccurate, or incomplete filing, and cargo arriving with no ISF on file can be held. AMS, the carrier's or NVOCC's advance manifest filing, is a different obligation: ISF is the importer's separate advance security filing, with its own filer, deadline, and bond exposure, and it applies only to cargo arriving in the United States by ocean vessel.
Glossary
ISF 10+2
The Importer Security Filing (known as 10+2) is the advance security data required by US Customs and Border Protection for cargo arriving in the United States by ocean vessel, comprising ten data elements the importer must file before the cargo is laden at the foreign port, plus two datasets transmitted by the carrier.