Highway Bill Passed in Senate May Increase Customs Fees

The U.S. Senate has approved a highway bill containing a provision that will increase Customs user fees. Customs user fees are designed to help with processing and inspection costs and per 19 USC 58 are paid by:

• Commercial vessels: $397 per arrival
• Commercial vehicles: $5 per arrival
• Railcars: $7.50 per car per arrival
• Private Aircraft: $25 per arrival
• Passengers: $5 per arrival, per passenger
• Customs Broker: $125 per year

According to the newly passed bill, these increased fees could be diverted to fund other (unrelated to customs) programs in the bill. Customs user fees have not been increased recently, and as such, they don’t cover as much of the costs as they previously had.  With that in mind, along with the fact that many ports are short on resources and have long cargo lines, it seems the new bill may not help the customs service at all.

As the additional dollars can be directed towards non customs costs, it’s not a stretch to envision the end result being increased costs for the users and importers, without any of the benefits of increased customs services at the ports.

If you have questions on this, or any other Supply Chain or Trade Compliance matter, please contact Allyn International at (239) 489-9900 or sales@allynintl.com.