FDA Begins Canceling Registrations of Food Facilities With No Unique Facility Identifier (UFI)
Trade Update • March 30, 2023
As communicated by CBP, the temporary enforcement discretion by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for filers to use the “Pending UFI Option” for food facility registrations has been terminated.
As of March 10, the FDA began to notify foreign and domestic facilities that food facility registrations without an accurate Unique Facility Identifier (UFI) will be canceled, as it has determined that sufficient time has passed for facilities to obtain a DUNS number.
Currently, FDA only recognizes the Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number as an acceptable UFI for food facility registration. FDA will not confirm a facility’s registration or provide a facility with a registration number until FDA verifies the accuracy of a facility’s UFI and verifies that the facility-specific address associated with the UFI is the same address associated with the facility’s registration.
Application for a DUNS number can be found here.
See these helpful tips from the FDA and this Webinar for more information.
Unregistered Consequences
If a foreign food facility is found to be unregistered, the food being imported or offered for import into the U.S. from that facility will be held at the port of entry unless CBP concurrence is obtained for the export of the food and the food is immediately exported from the port of arrival. Food held in this circumstance must not be entered and must not be delivered to the importer, owner, or ultimate consignee until the foreign facility is registered appropriately. FDA ordinarily will not allow the food to be transferred by any person from the port of entry into the U.S. or from the secure facility.
Questions about obtaining your UFI/DUNS, and if your imports are affected? We are always here to help, contact us.
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