Why Are Imports Stopped at the Border?
The only way to really answer this question is to first ask: “What is
being imported?”
This is because there are a limitless number of reasons why cargo is
stopped before entry takes place – and when I say “entry,” I mean both
physical entry into the territory of the U.S. as well as “entry” in
the Customs-ease sense of the word. (For more info. on entry, click
here.)
This results, in part, from requirements mandated by other US federal
agencies, for which US Customs has oversight over compliance on
imported merchandise. Examples would include proper labeling on
apparel articles (Federal Trade Commission), the requisite licenses
for vehicles (Dept. of Transportation), food stuffs (Food and Drug
Administration) for purposes of quality/pest extermination issues, and
the Drug Enforcement Administration due to a concern about chemicals
being imported for pharmaceutical use but ultimately ending up in the
hands of illegal drug manufacturers, and the list goes on and on.
Since the examination of imports takes up a lot of Customs resources,
an alternative to that is flagging a shipment for “doc review,” which
requires the shipping records together with the entry to be delivered
to Customs for an analysis of the documents.
A variety of factors could contribute to a shipment being questioned
such as a change in a supplier, an odd routing for the transport of
the cargo, a suspect manufacturer, a suspect importer, a commodity
being shipped that is not typically one imported by the importer, and
so on and so forth.
Shipments are viewed by US Customs as a “mosaic,” that is, there are a multitude of flags that may be raised with respect to cargo starting from the time it arrives at the foreign port. As a shipment is looked at in its “totality,” when enough points have accrued, then US Customs’ system generates an instruction for something as hands-off as a “doc review” to something as hands-on as an intensive physical exam.
These flags can be raised, and a “hold” placed on the goods for an
exam, long before entry is ever attempted to be made – something to
keep in mind should you unknowingly get involved with suspect cargo
after-the-fact.
Questions/comments? Post below or email me at clark.deanna@gmail.com
The only way to really answer this question is to first ask: “What is
being imported?”
This is because there are a limitless number of reasons why cargo is
stopped before entry takes place – and when I say “entry,” I mean both
physical entry into the territory of the U.S. as well as “entry” in
the Customs-ease sense of the word. (For more info. on entry, click
here.)
This results, in part, from requirements mandated by other US federal
agencies, for which US Customs has oversight over compliance on
imported merchandise. Examples would include proper labeling on
apparel articles (Federal Trade Commission), the requisite licenses
for vehicles (Dept. of Transportation), food stuffs (Food and Drug
Administration) for purposes of quality/pest extermination issues, and
the Drug Enforcement Administration due to a concern about chemicals
being imported for pharmaceutical use but ultimately ending up in the
hands of illegal drug manufacturers, and the list goes on and on.
Since the examination of imports takes up a lot of Customs resources,
an alternative to that is flagging a shipment for “doc review,” which
requires the shipping records together with the entry to be delivered
to Customs for an analysis of the documents.
A variety of factors could contribute to a shipment being questioned
such as a change in a supplier, an odd routing for the transport of
the cargo, a suspect manufacturer, a suspect importer, a commodity
being shipped that is not typically one imported by the importer, and
so on and so forth.
Shipments are viewed by US Customs as a “mosaic,” that is, there are a multitude of flags that may be raised with respect to cargo starting from the time it arrives at the foreign port. As a shipment is looked at in its “totality,” when enough points have accrued, then US Customs’ system generates an instruction for something as hands-off as a “doc review” to something as hands-on as an intensive physical exam.
These flags can be raised, and a “hold” placed on the goods for an
exam, long before entry is ever attempted to be made – something to
keep in mind should you unknowingly get involved with suspect cargo
after-the-fact.
Questions/comments? Post below or email me at clark.deanna@gmail.com
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