How to Fill Out and Submit CBP Form 214: ACE Filing and Zone Status

CBP Form 214 is the application a Foreign-Trade Zone operator (or an authorized agent) files with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to admit merchandise into an FTZ. Without a completed Form 214 and a permit from the port director, no foreign or domestic goods can legally enter a zone, aside from narrow exceptions for temporary deposits, transiting cargo, and certain domestic merchandise.¹ A blank copy is available from CBP’s forms library, but nearly all filings now move electronically through the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) using the e214 interface.²

What You Need Before You Start

Missing data is the most common reason an admission application gets rejected. Pull everything together before you open the form or start a transmission.

Zone and port identifiers: the FTZ number, Port Code, and Zone ID for the specific site where the goods will be admitted.
Importer identification: the IRS Employer Identification Number for the importer of record, which fixes any future duty liability to a specific entity.
Commodity description: the ten-digit Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) code for each item type, plus country of origin, gross weight in kilograms, and quantity in the units the tariff schedule requires.¹
Value: the aggregate shipment value in U.S. dollars, based on the price actually paid.
Carrier and transport documents: the conveying carrier’s name and the bill of lading or air waybill number. Every detail must match the carrier’s manifest; mismatches are a frequent cause of delay.
Examination invoice: two copies of a commercial invoice meeting 19 CFR Part 141, Subpart F. For privileged foreign status, the invoice must include tariff classification and value notations.¹
Evidence of right to make entry: a document similar to what you would use to enter the goods into customs territory, such as a bill of lading endorsed to you or a carrier certificate.
Carrier release order: the carrier that brought the goods to the port must execute a release order before CBP will authorize delivery to the zone. This can be attached to the Form 214 or arranged as a blanket release.¹
Statistical copy: CBP Form 214-A for transmittal to the Bureau of the Census, unless you have a direct reporting arrangement with the Bureau.

The zone operator signs the application, or an authorized representative signs for them. The operator keeps a current list of authorized signers on file with the port director.³

The Operator’s Bond Has to Be in Place First

Before any merchandise can be admitted, the zone operator needs a continuous customs bond on file. The bond guarantees compliance with FTZ regulations covering receipt, handling, status designation, transfer, and removal of merchandise, and it backs payment of duties and taxes on any goods that go missing or cannot be accounted for.⁴ It also covers reimbursement of CBP officer costs and any annual fees. Minimums typically start at $50,000 for new operators, though CBP can require more depending on the volume and nature of zone operations.

Submitting the Application Through ACE

The standard method is electronic filing through the e214 interface in ACE, transmitted via the Automated Broker Interface (ABI). Eligible filers include zone operators, admission applicants, and their authorized agents.⁵ Participation is voluntary, and there is no separate enrollment; you need ABI-certified software or a licensed customs broker who can transmit for you.

A single transmission can cover one shipment or consolidate several destined for the same zone. If you file an Importer Security Filing through the same transmission as the Form 214, the country of origin and 10-digit HTSUS number only need to be provided once.¹

CBP must receive the Form 214 data before admission can be authorized. If the system rejects the submission, it identifies the specific error, and you must retransmit the entire application with corrections. Partial fixes are not accepted.⁵ Complete format and syntax specifications for the e214 data set live in CBP’s CATAIR documentation.⁶

Choosing a Zone Status for Each Item

Form 214 requires a status designation for every item being admitted. That choice controls how duties are calculated if the goods later enter U.S. commerce, and some designations cannot be reversed. There are four categories.

Privileged Foreign Status

This freezes the tariff classification and duty rate at the time of admission. Even if the goods are later manufactured into something entirely different inside the zone, the original classification sticks. Once granted, privileged foreign status cannot be abandoned and follows the merchandise for as long as it stays within the zone system.⁷ It is the strategic pick when tariff rates are expected to rise, or when raw materials will be processed into finished goods that would carry a higher duty in finished form. You have to elect it before any manipulation or manufacturing changes the tariff classification.

Nonprivileged Foreign Status

This is the default for foreign merchandise that does not have privileged or zone-restricted status.⁸ Classification and duty are determined based on the merchandise’s character, condition, and quantity at the time you file the entry or entry summary to withdraw it from the zone.⁹ Manufacturers use this when assembling components into a finished product yields a lower duty rate than the components would carry individually.

Domestic Status

Domestic status covers merchandise that is the growth, product, or manufacture of the United States (with all internal revenue taxes paid), previously imported goods on which duty and tax have been paid, or goods that previously entered free of duty and tax.¹⁰ No Form 214 application or admission permit is required for domestic status merchandise unless the Commissioner of Customs orders otherwise. These goods can later return to customs territory free of quotas, duty, or tax.

Zone-Restricted Status

Merchandise taken into a zone solely for export, destruction, or storage receives zone-restricted status on application.¹¹ Once granted, the designation is permanent. The goods are treated as legally exported, so any applicable drawback, tax exemption, or export incentive can take effect at that point. Zone-restricted merchandise cannot be moved back into domestic consumption unless the Foreign-Trade Zones Board finds the return is in the public interest, which is rare. Think carefully before applying; there is no reversal.

Permit Issuance and Moving Goods to the Zone

The port director issues an admission permit when four conditions are met: the application is properly completed with the desired zone status, the operator has approved the admission (on the form or through a blanket approval), the merchandise is available for examination at the unlading point or the zone, and all other regulatory requirements are satisfied.³ For routine electronic filings, approval is often minutes. Shipments flagged for security holds or manifest discrepancies take longer.

After the permit is issued, the operator can submit a Permit to Transfer request through ACE to authorize the physical movement of goods from the port to the zone site.⁵ Foreign merchandise moving through customs territory to reach a zone travels in-bond and is subject to the same rules as any in-bond shipment between two points in customs territory.³ An applicant can withdraw the admission application at any time before the merchandise is actually admitted to the zone.

Reporting Discrepancies After Admission

When the physical shipment does not match what the Form 214 says, whether the issue is wrong quantities, damaged goods, or extra items, the operator has a specific reporting window. Under 19 CFR 146.37, the operator is liable under its bond for merchandise in the quantity and condition described on the Form 214 unless a discrepancy report modifies that record.¹²

There are two ways to report:

Joint signature on the Form 214: the operator and carrier both sign the Form 214 or another approved form within 15 days after admission, then report to the port director within 2 working days after signing.
CBP Form 5931: filed under 19 CFR Part 158, Subpart A, within 20 days after admission of the merchandise.¹²

Miss these deadlines and the operator’s bond covers the difference, meaning duties and taxes on merchandise you never actually received. Document shortages, overages, and damage promptly. Filing a discrepancy report is far cheaper than paying duty on phantom goods.

Penalties for Inaccurate Filings

Filing a Form 214 with materially false information exposes the filer to civil penalties under 19 USC 1592, which sets three tiers based on the degree of fault. Isolated clerical errors and honest mistakes of fact are not violations unless they form a pattern of negligent conduct.¹³

Fraud: a penalty up to the domestic value of the merchandise.
Gross negligence: the lesser of the domestic value, four times the duties and taxes lost, or (if no duty impact) 40 percent of the dutiable value.
Negligence: the lesser of the domestic value, two times the lost duties and taxes, or (if no duty impact) 20 percent of the dutiable value.¹³

Voluntary prior disclosure changes the math. Discover an error and report it to CBP before you learn about a formal investigation, and the penalty caps at 100 percent of the lost duties for fraudulent violations and drops further for lower culpability levels. Catching your own mistake before CBP catches it for you is where most operators can limit the damage.

Form 214 Covers Admission, Not Withdrawal

Form 214 gets goods into the zone. Getting them out is a separate step. When merchandise eventually leaves the zone for domestic consumption, export, or transfer to another zone, you need a separate customs permit on the appropriate entry or withdrawal form.¹⁴ Once that permit is issued, the goods must be physically removed within 5 working days. The port director can extend the deadline for good cause. While merchandise waits for removal, it cannot be further manipulated or manufactured; it must be segregated and identified as constructively transferred to customs territory.

1
eCFR. 19 CFR 146.32 – Application and Permit for Admission of Merchandise
2
U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Form 214 – Application for Foreign-Trade Zone Admission and/or Status Designation
3
eCFR. 19 CFR Part 146 – Foreign Trade Zones
4
eCFR. 19 CFR 113.73 – Foreign Trade Zone Operator Bond Conditions
5
Federal Register. Modification of Test Program Regarding Electronic Foreign Trade Zone Admission Applications
6
U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Customs and Trade Automated Interface Requirements – ACE Foreign Trade Zone Admission
7
eCFR. 19 CFR 146.41 – Privileged Foreign Status
8
eCFR. 19 CFR 146.42 – Nonprivileged Foreign Status
9
eCFR. 19 CFR 146.65 – Entry
10
eCFR. 19 CFR 146.43 – Domestic Status
11
eCFR. 19 CFR 146.44 – Zone-Restricted Status
12
eCFR. 19 CFR 146.37 – Operator Admission Responsibilities
13
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1592 – Penalties for Fraud, Gross Negligence, and Negligence
14
eCFR. 19 CFR 146.71 – Entry