How to choose a customs broker

What a customs broker does

A licensed customs broker transacts customs business with CBP on behalf of importers. For most importers that means:

• Entries. Filing the entry and the entry summary (CBP Form 7501), and depositing estimated duties within 10 working days of release.
• ISF for ocean cargo. The "10+2" filing, due no later than 24 hours before the cargo is loaded at the foreign port (CBP).
• Bonds. Arranging a single-entry or continuous bond through a surety.
• Classification and valuation. Picking the HTS codes, country of origin and, in 2026, the Chapter 99 lines that stack Section 232 and 301 duties on top of regular rates.
• Partner agency filings. FDA prior notice, USDA/APHIS, EPA, CPSC and others.
• Post-entry work. Post-summary corrections, protests, and answers to CBP requests for information (CF-28) and notices of action (CF-29).
• Refund filings. CAPE declarations for IEEPA tariff refunds on entries the broker filed (CBP).

What a broker doesn't do

• Take your place as importer. Your company is normally the importer of record, not the broker. Refunds from CBP go to the importer of record or its designated notify party, not to the broker by default.
• Move the freight. Booking ships, planes and trucks is a freight forwarder's job, though many companies do both.
• Pick a classification for you without your input. A good broker asks what the product is made of and how it is used. If nobody asks, the HTS code is a guess.
• Watch every deadline unless you agree it will. Liquidation, protest windows and drawback deadlines are tracked only if that is in the service you pay for.

How brokers are licensed

An individual broker must be a US citizen aged 21 or older, not a current federal employee, of good moral character, and must pass the Customs Broker License Exam (CBP). CBP's page puts the number of active licensed brokers at approximately 14,454.

The rules changed on December 19, 2022, when CBP's modernized broker regulations took effect (Federal Register):

• One national permit. Broker districts and district permits were abolished. A licensed broker with a national permit can do business nationwide, so a broker doesn't need an office at your port.
• Direct power of attorney. The broker must sign the POA directly with you, not through a forwarder or other third party (19 CFR 111.36(c)(3)).
• Client identity checks. Brokers must verify the identity of new clients. Expect to send company documents before your first entry.

Brokers pay an annual permit user fee of $190.88 per permit for FY2027 (CBP). They must also complete 36 credits of continuing education each three-year period, with the first report due in 2027 (Federal Register).

To verify a broker, ask for the license number and national permit number, and confirm them with the CBP Broker Management Officer listed on CBP's customs brokers page.

When you need a broker

No law makes you hire one. You can file your own entries if you get ABI certification with CBP. In practice, most importers use a broker in these cases:

• Shipments over $2,500. These generally need a formal entry (19 CFR 143.21, per Greenwich Mercantile). Goods under quota or subject to antidumping or countervailing duties need one at any value.
• Any ocean shipment. The ISF has to be filed before the cargo is loaded abroad, and errors cost up to $5,000 per violation.
• Regulated products. Food, cosmetics, medical devices, plants, chemicals and children's products all need partner agency data.
• Small commercial shipments. The $800 de minimis exemption has been suspended for all countries since August 29, 2025 (Benesch). Sellers who used to ship small parcels duty-free now file entries and pay duty.
• Tariff-heavy goods. With Section 232 and 301 duties stacked on many products, a wrong code is expensive in either direction.

Questions to ask before you sign

Ask these on the first call. The answers tell you more than the price sheet.

1. Who on your team is licensed, and who will prepare my entries? Entries can be prepared by staff, but under the "responsible supervision" of a licensed broker (19 CFR 111.28). You want a name, not "the team".
2. Will you sign the POA directly with my company? The rules have required it since 2022 (CBP). If the POA comes through your forwarder, the broker is out of compliance.
3. What is included in your entry fee? Ask how many HTS lines and invoices are included, and what extra lines, PGA filings, disbursement and exams cost. See our customs broker cost guide for published examples.
4. How do you handle Section 232 and 301 stacking? In 2026 one product can carry several Chapter 99 lines. Ask how they check them and whether they use CBP's CROSS rulings database for classification.
5. How do you get ISF data from my suppliers on time? A late ISF can cost $5,000 per violation. The broker needs a process for chasing your overseas suppliers.
6. Do you track liquidation and the 180-day protest window for me? If no protest is filed within 180 days of liquidation, the entry is finally liquidated, and refunds or corrections get much harder.
7. Who holds my continuous bond, what is the premium, and does it cover ISF? You should know your surety and your bond amount.
8. Do you file CAPE declarations for IEEPA refunds, and what do you charge? Only the importer of record or the broker that filed the entries can file them. CBP charges nothing for refunds.
9. Will refunds go to my bank account? Ask whether the broker has set itself as a notify party on CBP Form 4811. A notify party receives your refunds (CAPE notice).
10. Do you file drawback, or work with someone who does? If you export any imported goods, you may be able to recover 99% of the duty. See our duty drawback guide.
11. Have you handled my products before? Ask for the partner agencies and HTS chapters they file most. A broker that clears auto parts all day may not know FDA food rules.

Red flags

• Can't explain why it chose a classification.
• Discourages compliance questions or says "everyone codes it that way".
• Routes the power of attorney through a forwarder or another third party.
• Asks for your ACE Portal password. A broker files under its own filer code and never needs your login.
• Sets itself as the 4811 notify party or changes the refund bank account without your written instruction.
• Won't itemize a quote.
• Isn't a licensed broker but offers to "file your CAPE claim". Only the importer or the filing broker can.
• Pushes fake deadlines or pressure to sign today. CBP warns that pressure to act quickly is a sign of a scam (CSMS #68569567).

Broker, freight forwarder or digital broker

Digital brokers are still licensed brokers. The difference is the onboarding and the price list. Strix, for example, publishes $100 to $250 per entry for full brokerage, or $30 per entry if you file yourself with its support, plus a $500 one-time onboarding fee (Strix, checked November 8, 2026). Clearit USA publishes $89.95 to $149.95 per entry depending on mode (Clearit).

If you use a forwarder for customs, ask for the name of the licensed broker that files your entries, and sign the POA with that broker.

Switching brokers

You can change brokers at any time. A clean handover takes some planning.

1. Open your own ACE Portal account. With an Importer sub-account you can see your own entries and run reports without relying on the old broker. You also need it to receive IEEPA refunds (CBP).
2. Settle IEEPA refund filings first. A new broker generally can't file CAPE declarations for entries the old broker filed, because the filer code must match. Either the old broker files them or you file them yourself in ACE.
3. List open deadlines. Get every entry liquidated in the last 180 days, and any open protests or PSCs, so nothing falls between brokers.
4. Check the refund settings. Make sure the ACH refund account is yours and no broker is set as your 4811 notify party unless you want it.
5. Sort out the bond. Ask whether your continuous bond stays in place or the new broker will put a new one on file, and make sure there is no gap.
6. Plan ISF for cargo already on the water. Agree in writing who files ISF and entries for shipments that sail during the changeover.
7. Sign the new POA directly. And tell the old broker in writing that it no longer acts for you.

Brokers that work with small importers

These licensed brokers take on small and first-time importers; compare their published fees and the products they clear before you call.

First shipment? Start with our guide for small and first-time importers. Selling on Amazon? Read customs brokers for Amazon sellers.