U.S. Customs Regulations: Declarations, Limits, and Penalties

U.S. customs regulations require you to declare everything you acquired abroad when you enter the country, pay duty on anything above your personal exemption, keep prohibited items out of your luggage, and report any cash or monetary instruments over $10,000. Get these rules wrong and Customs and Border Protection can seize your goods, hit you with a civil penalty, or refer the matter for criminal prosecution. The rules are enforced at more than 300 land, air, and sea ports of entry.¹

What You Have to Declare

Every traveler arriving in the United States completes CBP Declaration Form 6059B. One form covers a family traveling together.²

You must list everything you acquired abroad along with its fair market value in U.S. dollars. That includes purchases, gifts, and items bought in duty-free shops. Understating values is what triggers penalties and seizures, so use honest numbers. Many airports offer electronic kiosks, and the Mobile Passport Control app lets you submit your declaration from your phone before you reach an officer.³

Your Duty-Free Exemption

Returning U.S. residents can bring back a certain value of goods without paying duty. The standard personal exemption is $800, and it applies to items intended for personal or household use that are physically with you when you arrive.⁴

Two higher thresholds apply depending on where you shopped:

$1,600 for goods acquired in American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the U.S. Virgin Islands, with no more than $800 of that total acquired elsewhere.
$800 for goods from Caribbean Basin beneficiary countries.

Both of these higher exemptions apply whether or not the items accompany you.⁴

Family members living in the same household who travel together can pool their exemptions. A family of four returning from Europe could bring in up to $3,200 worth of goods duty-free regardless of which family member owns each item.⁴

If your goods exceed the exemption, the first $1,000 of excess value is generally taxed at a flat 3% rate. Anything beyond that $1,000 is assessed at the item’s specific tariff rate.⁵

Cash and Monetary Instruments Over $10,000

Federal law requires you to report any currency or monetary instruments totaling more than $10,000 when entering or leaving the United States.⁶ The threshold applies to the combined total carried by a family or group traveling together, not per person.⁷

“Monetary instruments” is broader than cash. It includes traveler’s checks, money orders and promissory notes in bearer form, checks that have been signed but have the payee’s name left blank, and securities or stock in bearer form. Checks or money orders made payable to a specific named person and not endorsed do not count.⁷

Penalties for failing to report are severe. A willful violation can result in a fine of up to $250,000 and up to five years in prison. If the violation is connected to another federal crime or is part of a pattern involving more than $100,000 in illegal activity over 12 months, the maximum jumps to $500,000 and 10 years.⁸ CBP may also confiscate the entire amount.⁹ There is no penalty for carrying large sums of money; only for failing to report them.

Prohibited and Restricted Items

Some items are flatly banned. Others are allowed only with the right permits or documentation. CBP officers have broad authority to seize anything imported in violation of federal law, including the vehicle or luggage used to carry it.¹⁰

Always prohibited: illegal narcotics, goods that infringe on trademarks or copyrights, and most products made from endangered species. Wildlife rules have nuance. African elephant ivory, for example, is subject to a near-total ban on commercial trade, though personal possession of ivory you already own is not restricted. Antique ivory items may be imported with proper CITES documentation, and manufactured items containing a small amount of ivory may qualify for a limited exemption.¹¹ If you’re unsure whether a wildlife product qualifies, leave it behind.

Agricultural products are one of the most common restricted categories. The USDA prohibits or restricts many fresh, dried, and canned meats and meat byproducts because of the ongoing threat of foot-and-mouth disease and mad cow disease. Soil of any kind requires an advance permit. Certain plants, and any plant parts intended for propagation, need a foreign phytosanitary certificate. Live animals and birds are subject to permits, inspection, and quarantine rules that vary by species and country of origin.¹² Even a piece of fruit from a hotel breakfast can trigger a violation if you forget to declare it.

Firearms, ammunition, and biological cultures require prior approval before arriving at a port of entry. The traveler carrying restricted goods bears full responsibility for having the correct permits.

Counterfeit Goods

Goods bearing counterfeit trademarks are subject to seizure and forfeiture. Anyone who directs or assists the importation of counterfeit merchandise for sale can face a civil fine up to the manufacturer’s suggested retail price of the genuine version on a first seizure, and up to twice that amount on subsequent seizures.¹³

A narrow personal-use exception lets a traveler bring in one article of each type bearing a counterfeit mark every 30 days, provided it is for personal use and not for resale. Sell it within one year and the item or its value is subject to forfeiture.⁴ One knockoff handbag for yourself is tolerated. A suitcase full is not.

Prescription and Controlled Medications

Keep medication in its original container with the doctor’s instructions on the label, carry no more than a 90-day supply, and bring a copy of your prescription or a letter from your doctor.¹⁴

Rules tighten for medications containing controlled substances like stimulants, tranquilizers, sleeping pills, or certain cough medicines. You must declare these to the CBP officer, carry them in their original containers, bring only the quantity a person with your condition would normally need, and have a prescription or written statement from a physician confirming the medication is taken under medical supervision.¹⁴

U.S. residents face an additional limit. Without a prescription from a U.S.-licensed practitioner registered with the DEA, you may not import more than 50 dosage units of a controlled substance. With a valid DEA-registered prescription, you can bring more. Regardless of quantity, only medications that can be legally prescribed in the United States may be imported for personal use.¹⁴

Alcohol and Tobacco Limits

Returning travelers 21 or older may generally bring one liter of alcohol into the United States duty-free. You can import more, but anything beyond that is subject to duty and federal excise taxes collected at the port of entry. Higher duty-free allowances may apply if you’re arriving from the U.S. Virgin Islands or other Caribbean countries.¹⁵

There is no federal cap on personal-use alcohol, but bringing large quantities may prompt CBP to require an importer’s permit and label approval from the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. State laws can be more restrictive than the federal rules, so check the requirements of the state where you’re arriving. It is illegal for anyone under 21 to import alcohol, even as a gift.¹⁵

For tobacco, returning residents 21 and older may bring up to 200 cigarettes and 100 cigars duty-free when arriving from most countries. Amounts above that allowance are subject to seizure and penalties.¹⁶

What Happens at Inspection

After collecting your luggage, you proceed to an inspection station where a CBP officer reviews your declaration. During this primary inspection, the officer checks your identification, asks about your travel, and reviews what you’re bringing in. Most travelers clear this stage in a few minutes if their paperwork is in order.

If the officer wants a closer look, you’ll be sent to secondary inspection. Officers there open bags, examine items, and may use scanning equipment or canine units. Secondary inspection is routine and does not mean you are suspected of a crime.

Electronic Device Searches

CBP has legal authority to search electronic devices at the border, including phones, laptops, and tablets. In fiscal year 2025, CBP conducted over 55,000 device searches out of more than 419 million travelers processed. About 92% of those were basic searches, meaning an officer manually reviewed the device without connecting it to external equipment.¹⁷

An advanced search, where the officer connects your device to equipment to copy or analyze its contents, requires reasonable suspicion of a legal violation or a national security concern and must be approved by a supervisor at the GS-14 level or higher. Officers are prohibited from using your device to access data stored remotely in the cloud and must put the device in airplane mode before searching.¹⁷

If you refuse to unlock your device, the consequences depend on your status. Foreign nationals may face admissibility problems. U.S. citizens cannot be denied entry solely for refusing, but CBP may detain or exclude the device itself. Data copied during a search can be retained for up to 15 years in the Automated Targeting System, and longer if tied to an active investigation.¹⁷

Penalties If You Get It Wrong

What you face depends on what you failed to declare and whether the violation was accidental or deliberate.

Civil Penalties

Any merchandise you don’t declare before CBP examines your baggage is subject to forfeiture. On top of losing the goods, you owe a civil penalty. For non-controlled items, the penalty equals the value of the undeclared article. For controlled substances, the penalty is $500 or 1,000% of the item’s value, whichever is greater.¹⁸

CBP often mitigates first-offense penalties for ordinary dutiable goods. Under its published guidelines, a first violation discovered by an officer typically results in a penalty of three times the duty owed, with a minimum of $50. Aggravating factors like concealment push the penalty to between three and six times the duty, with a $100 minimum. A second or subsequent violation can reach six to eight times the duty, with a $250 minimum.¹⁹

Criminal Penalties

When undeclared goods cross into deliberate smuggling, federal criminal law applies. Knowingly importing merchandise contrary to law carries a fine and up to 20 years in prison.²⁰ The statute covers narcotics smuggling, undeclared contraband, and fraudulent schemes to evade duties.

Other Consequences

A customs violation can result in revocation of trusted traveler program membership, including Global Entry and TSA PreCheck. CBP provides written notice of any denial or revocation, and you may request reconsideration if you believe the decision was based on inaccurate information.²¹ A record of non-compliance is stored in federal databases and will likely lead to more frequent inspections on future trips.

Challenging a Seizure or Fine

If CBP seizes your property or assesses a penalty, you can petition for relief. The petition asks CBP to reduce or cancel the penalty. No specific form is required. You describe the property involved, explain the circumstances, and present facts justifying leniency.²²

Deadlines are tight. For seized items, the petition must be filed within 30 days of the mailing date on the seizure notice. For monetary penalties, the deadline is 60 days from the mailing of the penalty notice. Extensions are available when circumstances warrant them, but do not count on getting one.²²

CBP has discretion to reduce or cancel a penalty entirely if it finds the violation was committed without willful negligence and without any intent to defraud or break the law, or if mitigating circumstances justify relief.²³ An honest mistake with full cooperation goes a long way. A pattern of violations does not.

1
U.S. Customs and Border Protection. At Ports of Entry
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection. CBP Traveler Entry Forms
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Mobile Passport Control
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eCFR. 19 CFR Part 148 – Personal Declarations and Exemptions
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Customs Duty Information
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 31 USC 5316 – Reports on Exporting and Importing Monetary Instruments
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Money and Other Monetary Instruments
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 31 USC 5322 – Criminal Penalties
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USAGov. Declare Money to Customs When You Travel
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eCFR. 19 CFR Part 161 – General Enforcement Provisions
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U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Elephant Ivory FAQs
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Bringing Agricultural Products Into the United States
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1526 – Merchandise Bearing American Trademark
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Traveling with Medication to the United States
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Bringing Alcohol (Including Homemade Wine) Into the United States for Personal Use
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Carrying Tobacco Products (Cigarettes, Cigars, Bidis) to the United States for Personal Use
17
U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Border Search of Electronic Devices at Ports of Entry
18
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1497 – Penalties for Failure to Declare
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eCFR. Appendix A to Part 171 – Guidelines for Disposition of Violations of 19 USC 1497
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 545 – Smuggling Goods Into the United States
21
U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Trusted Traveler Program Denials
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eCFR. 19 CFR Part 171 Subpart A – Application for Relief
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1618 – Remission or Mitigation of Penalties