The U.S. customs entry process for importers is the sequence CBP requires before foreign goods can be released into the country: identify the Importer of Record, post a bond, file entry paperwork through the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE), classify and value the merchandise, pay estimated duties and fees, and keep the records for five years. Most commercial shipments follow the same core path, but the paperwork, deadlines, and financial exposure change with the value of the goods, how they arrive, and what they are.
Formal Entry, Informal Entry, and What Changed in 2025
Shipments valued at $2,500 or less can generally clear as an informal entry, with less paperwork and sometimes on-the-spot processing at the port.1eCFR. Merchandise Eligible for Informal Entry Informal treatment is not available for goods subject to quotas, anti-dumping duties, or countervailing duties — those go through the formal process no matter the value.2U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Filing an Informal Entry for Goods That Are Less Than $2500 in Value
If you have imported low-value goods before, note a significant change. Section 321 of the Tariff Act previously let shipments of $800 or less enter duty-free with minimal paperwork. In 2025, an executive order eliminated that de minimis exemption for goods from China and Hong Kong effective May 2, 2025.3The White House. Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Closes De Minimis Exemptions A later order suspended duty-free de minimis treatment for shipments from all countries, so imports are now subject to applicable duties, taxes, and fees regardless of value.4The White House. Suspending Duty-Free De Minimis Treatment for All Countries Shipments that used to slide through untouched now need to be entered and dutied.
What You Need in Place Before Goods Arrive
The person or business named as Importer of Record takes legal responsibility for the shipment. That entity needs an identifier CBP recognizes. Most U.S. businesses use their IRS Employer Identification Number. Individuals and sole proprietors can use a Social Security number. Foreign entities that have neither can apply for a Customs-Assigned Importer Number.5U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Importer Numbers
You also need a customs bond on file before CBP will release the merchandise. The bond, filed on CBP Form 301 through a surety company, guarantees payment of duties, taxes, and fees. There are two versions:
- A single entry bond covers one shipment, in an amount generally at least equal to the entered value plus duties, taxes, and fees.
- A continuous bond covers all your shipments for a year, typically set at 10 percent of the duties, taxes, and fees paid in the prior calendar year, with a $50,000 minimum.6U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Bonds – How Are Continuous and Single Entry Bond Amounts Determined
If you import more than occasionally, a continuous bond saves time and cost against buying a single bond each time.
Do You Need a Customs Broker
Filing your own entries is legal. But anyone else filing on your behalf must hold a valid customs broker license from CBP.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1641 – Customs Brokers Most commercial importers use one because the classification rules, filing mechanics, and compliance risk make self-filing impractical at any real volume. Before a broker can act for you, you must grant a power of attorney; the broker retains it in their records rather than filing it directly with CBP.8eCFR. Power of Attorney Retained by Customhouse Broker
Documents That Travel With the Shipment
For ocean freight, the Bill of Lading is the contract of carriage and your evidence of the right to claim the goods; for air cargo, the Air Waybill does the same. The commercial invoice from the seller must show the purchase price, country of origin, and a clear description of the merchandise. A packing list details what is in each container.
These feed two CBP forms. Form 3461, the Entry/Immediate Delivery, triggers initial release by identifying the shipment, port, and carrier. Form 7501, the Entry Summary, carries the financial and statistical detail CBP uses to assess duty.9U.S. Customs and Border Protection. CBP Form 7501 Documents that disagree with each other cause delay. If the invoice and packing list don’t match, or the carrier code on the entry form doesn’t match the Bill of Lading, expect the release to stall.
Classification, Value, and the Special Duties
Every product is assigned a code from the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS), which sets the duty rate.10United States International Trade Commission. Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States The HTS sorts goods by composition, function, and intended use. A product under one heading might carry a 2 percent duty; a similar product one heading over might carry 15 percent. There is real room for error on complex or multi-component goods, and CBP’s General Rules of Interpretation and prior rulings are the tools for working through them.
Dutiable value is usually the transaction value: the price actually paid or payable when the goods were sold for export to the United States. That figure is adjusted upward for packing costs the buyer paid, selling commissions, the value of “assists” (materials or tools you supplied to the manufacturer), and royalty or license fees paid as a condition of sale.11eCFR. 19 CFR 152.103 – Transaction Value International freight and insurance bundled into the invoice should be excluded from dutiable value. Overstating value means overpaying duty; understating it creates compliance exposure.
Anti-Dumping and Countervailing Duties
Some goods carry additional anti-dumping (AD) or countervailing duties (CVD) on top of the standard tariff. These apply where the U.S. Department of Commerce has determined that a foreign manufacturer sells below fair market value or benefits from government subsidies. Whether your product falls under an AD/CVD order is decided by the written scope description in the Federal Register notice, not by the HTS number listed alongside it. CBP recommends checking scope through the AD/CVD search in ACE, and requesting a formal scope ruling from Commerce when in doubt.12U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Antidumping and Countervailing Duties (AD/CVD) Frequently Asked Questions Missing an AD/CVD order is among the costliest compliance mistakes an importer can make; rates can run into the hundreds of percent.
Country of Origin Marking
Each imported article or its container must be marked, in English, with the country where it was made. The marking has to be conspicuous, legible, and durable enough to survive normal handling until it reaches the ultimate purchaser. If the item shows a U.S. place name or “U.S.A.” that could mislead a buyer about origin, the actual country of origin must appear nearby in comparable size, preceded by “Made in” or “Product of.” Goods that arrive unmarked are subject to an additional 10 percent duty on appraised value. Deliberately removing or altering origin marks can bring criminal penalties of up to $5,000 and one year of imprisonment.13eCFR. 19 CFR Part 134 – Country of Origin Marking
Other Agencies That Can Hold Your Shipment
CBP is not the only agency with authority at the border. Depending on what you are importing, Partner Government Agencies (PGAs) may require additional data, permits, or certifications, submitted through the same ACE portal.14U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Partner Government Agencies Import Guides Common ones:
- FDA, for food, drugs, medical devices, cosmetics, and dietary supplements. Food imports require prior notice to the FDA before arrival, with deadlines ranging from 2 hours (road) to 8 hours (ocean) before reaching the port.15eCFR. Requirements To Submit Prior Notice of Imported Food
- EPA, for chemical substances, which require a TSCA certification stating that the chemicals either comply with the Toxic Substances Control Act or are not subject to it.16U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. TSCA Requirements for Importing Chemicals
- USDA APHIS, for plants, animals, meat, and agricultural products.
- Consumer Product Safety Commission, for consumer goods subject to safety standards.
- ATF, for alcohol, tobacco, firearms, and ammunition.
If your product touches food, chemicals, vehicles, wildlife, or consumer safety, look at the applicable agency’s import guide before shipping. PGA data missing at arrival is a common source of unexpected delay.
Fees Beyond the Duty Itself
The Merchandise Processing Fee (MPF) applies to most formal entries at 0.3464 percent of the goods’ value. For fiscal year 2026, the minimum is $33.58 per entry and the maximum is $651.50.17Federal Register. Customs User Fees To Be Adjusted for Inflation in Fiscal Year 2026 Even a small shipment triggers the floor.
The Harbor Maintenance Fee (HMF) applies to commercial cargo arriving by ocean vessel at 0.125 percent of appraised value.18eCFR. 19 CFR 24.24 – Harbor Maintenance Fee Air cargo is not subject to the HMF.
Alcohol, tobacco, firearms, and ammunition also trigger federal excise taxes administered by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), separate from and in addition to duty, with their own permit and reporting requirements to handle before import.
Filing, Deadlines, and Paying
The Importer Security Filing for Ocean Cargo
If goods are arriving by ocean, you must file an Importer Security Filing (the “10+2”) through ACE before loading. It gives CBP advance data for security screening. Failure to file can lead CBP to withhold release, and in extreme cases seize the cargo. It is a separate obligation from the entry itself, and first-time ocean importers regularly miss it.
ACE, Deadlines, and Payment
Entry documentation is submitted electronically through CBP’s Automated Commercial Environment. Your company needs an ACE account, which requires a CBP Form 5106 on file, and an account owner who manages user access.19U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Applying for an ACE Secure Data Portal Account Get ACE credentials and bank authorizations working well before your first shipment arrives. Sorting out technical access while cargo sits at the port is expensive.
Form 3461 must be filed within 15 calendar days of the goods arriving at a U.S. port. That filing lets CBP release the merchandise into domestic commerce while the financials are finalized.20U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Entry Summary and Post Release Processes – Section: The Entry Process Form 7501, the Entry Summary, is due within 10 working days of the entry date, along with payment of estimated duties.21eCFR. 19 CFR Part 142 Subpart B – Entry Summary Documentation Payment goes through the Automated Clearinghouse (ACH) by direct electronic transfer from your bank, and the amount has to match the Entry Summary exactly.
Missed deadlines have teeth. CBP can assess liquidated damages against your bond or seize the merchandise, and the automated system flags non-compliant accounts.
Penalties When Something Is Wrong
Beyond deadlines, importers face civil penalties for errors in their filings. Severity turns on the level of culpability:
- Fraud: penalties up to the full domestic value of the merchandise.
- Gross negligence: up to the lesser of domestic value or four times the duties lost; if the error did not affect duty, the cap is 40 percent of dutiable value.
- Negligence: up to the lesser of domestic value or two times the duties lost; if no duty loss, the cap is 20 percent of dutiable value.22Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1592 – Penalties for Fraud, Gross Negligence, and Negligence
The dividing line between negligence and gross negligence often comes down to whether CBP believes you had reasonable procedures in place to catch errors. An isolated classification mistake is negligent. Ignoring a known AD/CVD order or systematically undervaluing shipments moves into gross negligence or fraud.
Prior Disclosure
If you find an error in a past entry before CBP begins investigating, filing a prior disclosure can cut the penalty sharply. For negligent violations with a duty shortfall, the penalty drops to interest on the unpaid duties. Grossly negligent violations with a duty loss get the same interest-only treatment. Even for fraud, disclosure caps the penalty at 100 percent of the lost duties, versus full domestic value without it.23U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Mitigation Guidelines: Fines, Penalties, Forfeitures and Liquidated Damages Timing is everything. The disclosure must reach CBP before you learn a formal investigation has started; after that, the option is gone.
After Release: Liquidation, Protests, and Recordkeeping
Liquidation is CBP’s final determination of the duty owed on an entry. For most entries it runs on a standard 314-day cycle from the entry date, though CBP can extend or suspend that timeline for entries under review.24Federal Register. Electronic Notice of Liquidation Once liquidated, the amounts are final and you receive notice through ACE.
If you disagree with the liquidation, say because CBP reclassified your goods at a higher rate, you have 180 days from the date of the liquidation notice to file a protest on CBP Form 19, either electronically through ACE or on paper at the port.25eCFR. Filing of Protests The 180-day window is firm. Miss it and the liquidation stands regardless of whether the classification was correct.
Federal law requires you to keep all records related to each entry for five years from the date of entry: commercial invoices, shipping documents, evidence of duty payment, and correspondence with your broker.26Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1508 – Recordkeeping For drawback claims, retention runs three years after the claim is liquidated. CBP audits can surface years after a shipment cleared, so organize digital records from day one. That habit is the difference between resolving an audit quickly and facing penalties for documents you can no longer produce.