Customs & Trade Glossary

A pre-departure data filing required by CBP for ocean shipments to the U.S., filed at least 24 hours before vessel loading at the foreign port.

ISF consists of 10 importer-supplied data elements (seller, buyer, importer of record number, consignee number, manufacturer, ship-to party, country of origin, HTS, container stuffing location, consolidator) and 2 carrier-supplied elements (vessel stow plan, container status messages). Late, missing, or inaccurate filings can carry CBP penalties up to $5,000 per violation, plus cargo holds and increased exam rates.

• ISF Filing Support service
• What Happens If Your ISF Is Filed Late?
• ISF Filing (10+2): A No-Nonsense Guide

The U.S. tariff classification system used to determine duty rates, trade-agreement eligibility, and AD/CVD exposure for imported goods.

Every product imported into the U.S. is assigned a 10-digit HTS code, with the first six digits harmonized internationally. Classification is governed by the six General Rules of Interpretation (GRIs), Section and Chapter notes, and CBP CROSS rulings. The HTS code determines the duty rate, eligibility for trade agreement preferences (USMCA, etc.), and exposure to Section 301/232 tariffs and AD/CVD orders.

• HTS Classification Review service
• HTS Code Classification: A Practical Guide

The federal agency within the Department of Homeland Security responsible for enforcing customs, trade, and immigration laws at U.S. ports of entry.

CBP regulates the entry of all imported merchandise into the United States, assesses duties and taxes, enforces trade-agreement rules, conducts cargo examinations, and administers programs such as ISF, ACE, CAPE, and FTZs. Licensed customs brokers are authorized by CBP (via the Customs Broker License, CHB number) to file entries on behalf of importers.

A person or firm licensed by CBP to file customs entries and otherwise transact business with CBP on behalf of importers.

Customs brokers are responsible for accurate classification, valuation, duty payment, ISF filing, exam coordination, and CBP compliance for each shipment they clear. The broker must operate under a valid CBP Customs House Broker License (CHB number). AP Customs LLC operates under CHB #42750.

• Customs Broker vs. Freight Forwarder

An ocean cargo carrier that issues its own bills of lading and consolidates shipments, but does not operate the vessels.

NVOCCs are licensed by the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) and act as carriers to their importer customers while being shippers to the underlying vessel-operating common carrier (VOCC). NVOCCs commonly file ISF on behalf of their importer clients, but the U.S. customs entry is a separate filing made by a licensed customs broker.

• Customs Brokerage for NVOCCs
• NVOCC vs. Freight Forwarder: Who Handles Customs Clearance?

A logistics intermediary that arranges international transportation of goods on behalf of shippers, without itself acting as the carrier or customs broker.

Freight forwarders coordinate ocean, air, and inland transportation, prepare shipping documentation, and book space with carriers. They are distinct from licensed customs brokers, although some firms hold both licenses. For U.S. import clearance, a forwarder cannot file the customs entry unless it also holds a CBP customs broker license.

• Customs Brokerage for Freight Forwarders
• How Freight Forwarders Should Choose a Customs Broker

The party legally responsible for ensuring that imported goods comply with all U.S. laws and regulations, and for paying duties, taxes, and fees to CBP.

The importer of record is identified on the customs entry and is legally accountable for accuracy of classification, valuation, country of origin, and other entry data — regardless of whether a customs broker prepared the filing. The IOR must have a valid bond on file and grant a power of attorney to any broker filing on their behalf.

A legal document authorizing a customs broker to transact business with CBP on behalf of the importer of record.

A valid POA is required before any customs broker can file an entry or ISF on behalf of an importer. CBP requires that the POA be executed by an authorized officer of the importing entity. AP Customs follows a documented POA validation and onboarding process for every new importer client.

A surety bond required by CBP for most formal entries, guaranteeing payment of duties, taxes, and fees, and compliance with all customs regulations.

Customs bonds come in two forms: continuous bonds (one-year coverage for all of an importer's entries) and single entry bonds (per-shipment coverage). The bond is a financial guarantee to CBP that the importer will comply with all applicable laws and pay all amounts owed.

• Continuous Bond vs. Single Entry Bond

A customs bond that covers all of an importer's entries for a 12-month period.

The continuous bond minimum is $50,000 or 10% of total duties, taxes, and fees paid in the prior 12 months — whichever is greater. CBP may require the bond to be increased mid-period if duty exposure changes materially. Continuous bonds are typically more cost-effective than stacking single entry bonds for any importer with more than a handful of annual entries.

A customs bond covering a single import shipment, typically used by one-off or low-volume importers.

An SEB is written for a specific shipment and is generally priced as a percentage of the entered value plus duties, taxes, and fees. For importers with regular shipments, a continuous bond is usually significantly less expensive per entry.

A CBP-ordered inspection of an imported shipment, ranging from non-intrusive imaging to full devanning at a Centralized Examination Station (CES).

Exam types include VACIS/NII imaging, tailgate exams, partial container exams, and full intensive (CES) exams. Costs — devanning, drayage to CES, CES handling fees, and demurrage — are paid by the importer, not CBP. Common triggers include commodity-based targeting, importer compliance history, country of origin, manifest anomalies, and random selection.

• CBP Exam Coordination service
• CBP Exams: What Importers and Forwarders Need to Know

A CBP-approved facility where shipments selected for intensive examination are devanned, inspected, and re-loaded.

CES operators are private companies authorized by CBP to perform exam handling. The importer pays for trucking from the port to the CES, devanning, examination handling, and any associated demurrage. Choice of CES, scheduling, and document submission timing significantly affect total exam duration and cost.

Additional duties imposed by the U.S. on imports found to be sold below fair market value (antidumping) or subsidized by foreign governments (countervailing).

AD/CVD orders are administered by the Department of Commerce and enforced by CBP. Rates can be very high — sometimes exceeding 100% — and can apply retroactively. Accurate HTS classification, country-of-origin determination, and manufacturer identification are critical to managing AD/CVD risk on imports of covered merchandise (e.g. steel, aluminum, certain chemicals, furniture, and many other categories).

U.S. law prohibiting the import of any merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part by forced labor in a foreign country.

Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. § 1307) bars goods made by forced, convict, indentured, or forced child labor. The phrase "wholly or in part" means even a single tainted input can render an entire finished good inadmissible. CBP assesses forced labor against the International Labour Organization's 11 indicators (e.g. debt bondage, withholding of wages, restriction of movement) and enforces the statute through Withhold Release Orders, Findings, and the UFLPA. CBP's current operational guidance for importers is CBP Publication No. 5560-0526 (June 9, 2026).

• UFLPA & Forced Labor Compliance
• Forced Labor and UFLPA Compliance: What Importers Need to Know

A U.S. law creating a rebuttable presumption that goods from China's Xinjiang region, or from listed entities, are made with forced labor and barred from entry.

The UFLPA (Public Law 117-78) presumes that any goods mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR), or by a company on the UFLPA Entity List, are made with forced labor and prohibited under Section 307. The presumption is rebuttable, but the burden falls entirely on the importer to overcome it with clear and convincing evidence — typically supply-chain tracing to the raw-material stage, submitted through CBP's Forced Labor Portal. CBP enforces heightened scrutiny across 12 high-priority sectors including cotton, polysilicon/silica, tomatoes, aluminum, steel, seafood, and apparel.

• UFLPA & Forced Labor Compliance
• Forced Labor and UFLPA Compliance: What Importers Need to Know

The consolidated list of entities whose goods are subject to the UFLPA rebuttable presumption and barred from entry into the United States.

Maintained by the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force (FLETF) and published by DHS, the UFLPA Entity List names companies that mine, produce, or manufacture goods with forced labor in Xinjiang; that work with the regional government to recruit or transport Uyghur or other persecuted groups; or that source material from those entities. Goods linked to any listed entity are presumed inadmissible. Importers should screen suppliers against the current list continuously, as it is updated over time.

• UFLPA & Forced Labor Compliance

A CBP order to detain specific merchandise when information reasonably indicates it was made with forced labor.

A WRO is issued under Section 307 when CBP has information reasonably indicating (reasonable suspicion) that goods were mined, produced, or manufactured with forced labor. Cargo subject to a WRO is detained at the port. The importer generally has about three months to demonstrate admissibility through an admissibility review — proving the goods are outside the scope of the order or were not made with forced labor — or may export the goods. The importer pays storage and demurrage while the cargo is held.

• UFLPA & Forced Labor Compliance
• CBP Exams: What Importers and Forwarders Need to Know

A stronger Section 307 enforcement action, issued on probable cause, allowing CBP to seize and forfeit forced-labor merchandise.

A Finding is published when CBP has probable cause — a higher evidentiary standard than the reasonable suspicion behind a Withhold Release Order — that merchandise was made with forced labor. Unlike WRO or UFLPA detentions, goods subject to a Finding can be seized and forfeited, and they cannot be exported. The path to contest a Finding is a petition to the CBP Fines, Penalties & Forfeitures (FP&F) Officer.

• UFLPA & Forced Labor Compliance

A U.S. law creating a rebuttable presumption that goods made wholly or in part by North Korean labor — anywhere in the world — are made with forced labor and prohibited.

CAATSA (22 U.S.C. § 9241a) applies the same rebuttable-presumption logic as the UFLPA, but to goods produced wholly or in part by North Korean nationals or citizens regardless of where the work occurs. This is relevant to supply chains that use cross-border or third-country contract labor. As with the UFLPA, the burden is on the importer to rebut the presumption with clear and convincing evidence.

• UFLPA & Forced Labor Compliance

A CBP process — Phase 1 launched April 20, 2026 — that allows certain importers of record to request refunds of IEEPA duties through a CAPE Declaration filed in ACE.

Eligibility criteria, process steps, and refund timing for CAPE are subject to change. Importers and their brokers should confirm current CBP CSMS guidance before filing. NVOCCs and freight forwarders typically alert importer clients to the program but defer the actual filing decision to the importer of record and their licensed customs broker.

• CAPE Phase 1 Refunds: What NVOCCs Should Tell Their Importer Clients Now

A U.S. law authorizing the President to regulate international commerce in response to declared national emergencies, including imposing additional tariffs on imports.

IEEPA-based tariffs have been used in recent years to impose additional duties on imports from specific countries or sectors. Importers can pay IEEPA duties at the time of entry, and — depending on subsequent regulatory action — may be eligible to request refunds through processes such as CAPE.

The CBP filing through which an importer formally enters merchandise into the U.S. commerce, declares its classification and value, and pays applicable duties, taxes, and fees.

A customs entry typically consists of an entry filing (CBP Form 3461) and an entry summary (CBP Form 7501), filed electronically through ACE. The entry must be filed by a licensed customs broker (or by the importer themselves with proper authorization) and is subject to CBP review, exam selection, and potential post-entry audit.

CBP's primary electronic system for processing imports and exports, used by brokers, importers, carriers, and other trade participants.

ACE is the platform through which entries, entry summaries, ISF filings, CAPE Declarations, manifest data, and many other trade transactions are submitted to CBP. CBP continues to modernize ACE; brokers should expect ongoing changes to ACE filing requirements.