#customs
U.S. Customs and Border Protection compliance, HTS classification, entry procedures, broker relationships, and importer of record responsibilities
CBP reconciliation lets importers flag entries with undetermined value or FTA claims and true them up on Entry Type 09: 12 months for FTA, 21 for value.
IMMEX lets US firms import materials into Mexico duty-free — if you meet the export floor, run Annex 24 inventory control, and clear USMCA origin rules.
Every import must name its origin country in English for the end buyer; miss it and CBP issues Form 4647 and a 10% marking duty.
COGSA caps ocean carrier payouts at $500 per package even when the carrier is at fault — only cargo insurance covers the gap.
Importers buying via a middleman can declare the factory's first-sale price to U.S. Customs and cut duties 10–20%, if every tier is documented.
Honduras waives penalties on tax arrears through 2025 if paid by October 12, 2026 — and extends RIT duty-free imports five years for exporters.
CBP voids importer of record numbers immediately when Form 5106 data is inaccurate - no cure period. Verify your physical address, email, and phone now.
Under Incoterms 2020, DDP is the only rule where the seller pays import duties — under EXW, DAP, and every other term, the buyer absorbs each tariff change. This guide maps how each term allocates duty risk, why suppliers are shifting from DDP to DAP, and how to capitalize duties into landed cost under ASC 330.
A U.S. continuous customs bond must be at least $50,000 or 10% of the prior year's duties, taxes, and fees, whichever is greater, while a single-entry bond equals shipment value plus estimated duties and fees. This guide shows where the break-even falls (about four entries a year), why ocean freight needs a separate ISF bond, and how to book duties, MPF, HMF, and bond premiums as landed cost.
The EU ended duty-free entry for parcels under €150 on July 1, 2026, France charges €2 per item type, and an EU-wide handling fee of about €2 per parcel arrives in November — Etsy collects the France fee at checkout but not the €3 duty. Here is what each fee costs on a real order and how to book pass-through fees, prepaid duties, and IOSS VAT correctly.
A Foreign Trade Zone defers duties until goods enter U.S. commerce, consolidates a week of shipments into a single Merchandise Processing Fee (capped at $651.50 for FY 2026 rather than charged per entry), and — with FTZ Board authorization — lets you elect the lower finished-good rate when component tariffs are inverted. Small importers reach all three as users of a 3PL magnet site, without activating a zone of their own.
Section 232 duties on imported kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities double from 25% to 50% on January 1, 2027, and upholstered furniture rises to 30%. This guide walks retailers through per-SKU landed-cost math, classification review, supplier renegotiation, tiered price architecture, and the UNICAP rule that capitalizes duty into inventory so a pre-buy hits cash before it hits the deduction.
