The customs clearance process is how imported goods legally enter U.S. commerce, and it runs from the paperwork your supplier prepares overseas through duty payment at the port and recordkeeping years after the goods arrive. Customs and Border Protection oversees the process and enforces trade rules on behalf of more than 40 other federal agencies.1U.S. Customs and Border Protection. About CBP Most shipments with clean documentation clear within one to three days; shipments with errors, or those flagged for examination, can sit for weeks.
Documents You Need Before the Shipment Leaves
Getting the paperwork right up front prevents most delays. Four documents do the heavy lifting.
The commercial invoice comes from your supplier and states the full purchase price, the currency, the country of manufacture, and the names and addresses of buyer and seller. CBP uses it to confirm what the shipment is worth, which drives what you owe.
The packing list breaks down what is inside each carton or container, with gross and net weight and dimensions. Quantities have to match the commercial invoice exactly. When they don’t, CBP notices, and the entry stalls while the discrepancy gets sorted out.
Every product needs a Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) classification number. This ten-digit code sets the duty rate. The first six digits follow an international standard, the next two are U.S. subheadings that fix the duty rate, and the final two are statistical suffixes.2United States International Trade Commission. Harmonized Tariff Schedule System User Guide You can look up codes through the International Trade Commission’s online database.3United States International Trade Commission. Harmonized Tariff Schedule Misclassification can trigger penalties and back-duty assessments.
The bill of lading (ocean freight) or air waybill (air cargo) is the transport contract from your carrier, showing the tracking number, port of loading, and destination port. Every detail here needs to match your invoice and packing list. Mismatches are one of the fastest ways to get flagged for review.
Import Security Filing for Ocean Cargo
If your goods are moving by sea, you have an additional filing on top of the standard entry documents. This is the Import Security Filing, known as the “10+2 rule.” Air shipments don’t require an ISF; the carrier handles a separate electronic manifest instead.
The importer or their agent must transmit eight data elements no later than 24 hours before the cargo is loaded onto the vessel overseas, not 24 hours before it arrives here. Those elements are seller, buyer, manufacturer, importer of record number, consignee number, ship-to party, country of origin, and HTS number.4U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Importer Security Filing and Additional Carrier Requirements Two additional elements, the container stuffing location and the consolidator, are due at least 24 hours before the ship arrives at a U.S. port. If final data isn’t available when you file, you submit your best information and update the record before arrival. Missing the deadline can bring penalties and cargo holds.
Customs Bonds
You can’t clear a formal entry without a customs bond. The bond is a financial guarantee, backed by a surety, that you will pay all duties, taxes, and fees and comply with import regulations. If you don’t pay, the surety pays CBP and then collects from you.5eCFR. 19 CFR 142.4 – Bond Requirements
You have two choices. A single entry bond covers one shipment and is generally set at the entered value plus duties, taxes, and fees. A continuous bond covers all imports for a year and is calculated at 10% of the duties, taxes, and fees you paid over the prior 12 months, with a $100 minimum.6U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Bonds – How Are Continuous and Single Entry Bond Amounts Determined? Regular importers usually save money with a continuous bond. Bonds are submitted electronically through ACE by a surety or agent.7U.S. Customs and Border Protection. ACE eBond Processing
Formal Versus Informal Entry
Not every shipment goes through the full process. CBP splits entries into two tracks based on value.
- Informal entry is generally available for shipments under $2,500. The paperwork is lighter and no bond is required. Informal entry is not available for goods subject to quota, antidumping, or countervailing duties, regardless of value.8U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Filing an Informal Entry for Goods That Are Less Than $2500 in Value
- Formal entry is required at $2,500 or more. This is the full process: bond, ACE filing, entry summary, and duty payment.
What You’ll Actually Pay
The amount owed depends on what you’re bringing in, where it’s coming from, and what it’s worth. CBP starts from “transaction value” — the actual price paid for the merchandise.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1401a – Value If that price can’t be verified or isn’t arm’s-length, CBP works through alternative valuation methods.
Base Duty Rates
Your HTS code sets the base rate. Ad valorem duties, the most common, are a percentage of value: a $10,000 shipment at 5% owes $500. Specific duties are a set amount per unit of weight or quantity. Compound duties combine both.
Standard Fees on Every Formal Entry
On top of the duty, formal entries pay a Merchandise Processing Fee of 0.3464% of value. For fiscal year 2026, the MPF minimum is $33.58 and the maximum is $651.50 per entry.10U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Customs User Fee – Merchandise Processing Fees Ocean shipments also pay a Harbor Maintenance Fee of 0.125% of cargo value.11eCFR. 19 CFR 24.24 – Harbor Maintenance Fee
Section 232 and Section 301 Tariffs
Many imports carry additional tariffs that stack on top of the base HTS rate. As of April 2026, steel and aluminum articles carry a Section 232 tariff of 50% ad valorem, and copper articles carry 25%.12The White House. Strengthening Actions Taken to Adjust Imports of Aluminum, Steel, and Copper Into the United States Section 301 tariffs apply additional duties to thousands of product categories from China. If you’re importing from China, check whether your HTS code appears on the Section 301 list before you commit to the purchase.
Antidumping and Countervailing Duties
If a foreign government subsidizes an export industry or a foreign manufacturer sells in the U.S. below home-market prices, the Department of Commerce can impose antidumping (AD) or countervailing (CVD) duties. These sit on top of everything else, and rates sometimes exceed 200% for particular product-country combinations.13U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Antidumping and Countervailing Duties (AD/CVD) Frequently Asked Questions What you deposit at entry is only an estimate. Commerce conducts retrospective reviews and can raise the final amount well above your deposit, sometimes years later.
The De Minimis Exemption Has Been Suspended
Until mid-2025, shipments valued at $800 or less could enter duty-free under Section 321.14U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Section 321 Programs That treatment is now broadly suspended. An executive order effective August 29, 2025 eliminated duty-free de minimis for most shipments regardless of value, origin, or shipping method,15The White House. Suspending Duty-Free De Minimis Treatment for All Countries and a February 2026 order continued the suspension, with international postal shipments handled differently under current implementation.16The White House. Continuing the Suspension of Duty-Free De Minimis Treatment for All Countries If you budgeted around the old $800 threshold, recalculate. Duties, taxes, and the MPF now apply.
What Happens at the Port
Once the shipment arrives, clearance moves through several stages.
Filing the Entry in ACE
The importer of record or a licensed broker submits the entry electronically through the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE), CBP’s single-window system.17U.S. Customs and Border Protection. How to Use the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) The filing describes the goods, their value, and the HTS codes.18Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1484 – Entry of Merchandise
Classification, Value Check, and Possible Exam
CBP’s system compares the declared codes and values against the description of the goods. If something looks off, such as leather shoes classified as rubber sandals or a value well below market, the entry gets flagged. Any entry can also be pulled for physical examination. Flagged goods move to a Centralized Examination Station, a privately operated facility where officers open and inspect the cargo.19eCFR. 19 CFR Part 118 – Centralized Examination Stations A significant share of exams are random, so being selected doesn’t mean you did something wrong, but it adds time and possible storage charges.
Paying Duties and Release
Once review is complete, CBP notifies the importer to pay the calculated duties, fees, and additional tariffs, usually through an Automated Clearing House account or by check. If goods are released before the entry summary is finalized, you have 10 working days from release to file the summary and deposit estimated duties.20eCFR. 19 CFR Part 142 – Entry Process Status then changes to released, and you can arrange domestic transportation.
Fixing Errors and Challenging Decisions
Mistakes on an entry aren’t necessarily final. The Post-Summary Correction process lets you fix an entry summary electronically. You can file a PSC within 300 days of entry or up to 15 days before the scheduled liquidation date, whichever comes first.21U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Post Summary Corrections After liquidation, the PSC window closes and a protest is the remaining option.
Liquidation is CBP’s final determination of the duties and fees owed. If CBP doesn’t liquidate within one year of entry, the entry is deemed liquidated at your declared amounts. CBP can extend, but the outer limit is four years.22Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1504 – Limitation on Liquidation If the final number differs from your deposit, you’ll owe more or receive a refund.
To challenge a liquidation, you have 180 days from the date of liquidation to file a written or electronic protest specifying which decisions you’re contesting, the affected merchandise, and your reasons.23Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1514 – Protest Against Decisions of Customs Service Only one protest per entry is allowed, though you can amend it to add objections before the 180 days run.
Recordkeeping After Release
Clearance doesn’t end your obligations. You must keep all entry-related records — commercial invoices, packing lists, bills of lading, entry summaries, and payment receipts — for five years from the date of entry.24Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1508 – Recordkeeping CBP conducts post-entry audits, sometimes years later, and these are the records they’ll ask for.
Penalties turn on whether CBP treats a failure as negligent or willful. Negligent failures carry fines of up to $10,000 per release or 40% of appraised value, whichever is less. Willful failures reach $100,000 per release or 75% of appraised value, whichever is less.25Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1509 – Examination of Books and Witnesses Organized digital recordkeeping is cheap compared with either bracket.
Prohibited and Restricted Goods
Some products can’t enter at all, and others require clearance from an agency other than CBP. CBP enforces import laws on behalf of more than 40 partner agencies and routes affected entries to those agencies for review.26U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Partner Government Agencies Import Guides
Prohibited items include certain obscene materials, items designed to facilitate violence, and goods that infringe trademarks or copyrights.27eCFR. 19 CFR Part 145 Subpart E – Restricted and Prohibited Merchandise Counterfeit goods are subject to seizure and forfeiture, and the person who directed or financed the import can be fined up to the manufacturer’s suggested retail price of the genuine article on a first seizure, and double that on any later seizure.28Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1526 – Merchandise Bearing American Trade-Mark
Restricted items can be imported with the right permits or clearances. Common categories and the agencies that oversee them:
- Food, drugs, medical devices, and cosmetics: Food and Drug Administration
- Plants, animal products, and agricultural goods: USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
- Motor vehicles: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Firearms and ammunition: Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
- Pesticides and certain chemicals: Environmental Protection Agency
- Consumer products such as toys, electronics, and textiles: Consumer Product Safety Commission
If your product falls under another agency’s authority, the entry won’t be released until that agency clears it. This is where shipments most often stall, not because of a CBP problem, but because the importer didn’t realize the product needed FDA registration or an EPA notice of arrival. Confirm partner agency requirements before you ship rather than after the container is sitting at the port.
Whether to Use a Customs Broker
You can legally file your own entries, but most commercial importers hire a licensed customs broker. Brokers file entries, classify goods, calculate duties, and communicate with CBP on your behalf. Professional fees for a standard formal entry typically run from $40 to $200 per shipment, depending on complexity and location.
Before a broker can act for you, you must sign a customs power of attorney directly with the broker; a freight forwarder or other third party can’t execute it on your behalf.29eCFR. 19 CFR Part 111 Subpart C – Duties and Responsibilities of Customs Brokers The broker must give you written notice that you remain personally liable for customs charges if the broker fails to pay them. Even with a broker handling the paperwork, the duty bill is still yours if something goes wrong. Brokers also have to promptly advise you when they find an error or compliance issue in your documents, and one who files papers known to be false risks license revocation.