Customs is a big Elvis fan

The Customs Service is asking more foreign countries to use its Electronic Visa Information System, which matches import visas with textile shipments.The service recently upgraded the system, called Elvis, to handle greater volumes of data, said Connie Chancey, branch chief of quota enforcement and administration.Elvis, which has been running since 1991, has users in Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. Customs last week asked other nations to begin using the system.Nations transmit a visa number to Elvis for all textile goods shipped to the United States, Chancey said. For the goods to be released by Customs, importers also must send Elvis a visa number. If the two match, Customs releases the goods, Chancey said.Elvis reduces data entry errors and combats the use of counterfeit visas, Chancey said.