Government
International | Washington | Customs | Security | Regulation
Customs brokers argue the US ’ $ 800 de minimis level exposes the country to excess risk . Shutterstock . com
Morgan said CBP ’ s expectations for customs brokers seem to be intensifying across all entry types , but the scrutiny on so-called “ Type 86 ” shipments — de minimis shipments where brokers send a limited set of data elements to CBP — seems to be “ significantly higher right now .”
“ Normal customs entries involve more rigorous and detailed compliance checks due to their higher value and complexity and require more knowledge of supply chains and risk assessment ,” she said . “ Type 86 entries , however , are being more closely monitored
“ This is a higher level of involvement with the importers .”
for abuse and security risks , necessitating an unprecedented granular understanding of what products are with precise descriptions , product classification , valuation , origin , and full disclosure of the parties involved in the transaction to combat undervaluation and misclassification .”
Morgan pointed to a recent action by CBP to suspend multiple customs brokers from participating in the Entry Type 86 Test program after determining that their entries posed an unacceptable compliance risk .
www . joc . com
‘ Reasonable care ’ uncertainty
Allen said Type 86 shipments , in particular , present a quandary for brokers as they weigh whether they are required to meet a so-called “ reasonable care ” standard that typically applies to importers of record .
“ A customs broker is extremely challenged in meeting the reasonable care standard for de minimis entries , as they are reliant on the information that their client provides to them ,” Allen said . “ There is limited ability to have visibility to that depth of information .
“ In a ‘ normal ’ entry scenario , a customs broker has a choice if they want to serve as the importer of record , and most do not ,” she added . “ The owner , purchaser or consignee serves as the importer of record .”
In Type 86 shipments , the flow of information around the merchandise has been limited to only what the broker needs to file the entry .
“ Additional communication must be developed if the brokers need to be more involved in the transactions and merchandise being imported ,” Allen said . “ This is also something that the brokers are not necessarily comfortable with — and has been questioned by the importing community as well .”
As Wierzbowska-Fuller put it , “ With Entry Type 86 , we are getting less data and yet more responsibility . It is disruptive to all of us , everyone in the supply chain and even for customs . They can ’ t keep up with it .”
email : eric . johnson @ spglobal . com
September 9 , 2024 | Journal of Commerce 47