U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Notify Importers of Increase Import Audits and Enforcement

As part of its new Regulatory Audit procedure, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has begun issuing “informed compliance notifications” to importers via email, telephone, and in writing. According to a CBP Regulatory Audit official, if a company receives a notification via email or telephone call, that means the company is a candidate for an audit survey. CBP is sending the letters to the top 1,000 importer-of-record numbers that CBP has not audited in the past 10 years as CBP works to clear its audit pool of major importers that it has not recently audited.

The “informed compliance notification” letters recently issued to major U.S. importers, encourage importers to review their existing customs compliance policies to ensure that they are up to date, and reflect the company's current practice. The CBP official also indicated that these letters should be taken very seriously, and any company receiving such a letter, should conduct a self-review and consider a prior disclosure, because it is likely that CBP believes they have identified specific problems with the company’s imports. Specifically, in the letters, CBP warns importers that they could be subject to penalties and/or seizures in the event that CBP identifies non-compliance with U.S. customs law.

If you have questions regarding whether your company is “audit ready,” or if your company receives a telephone call, e-mail or letter from CBP regarding a regulatory audit, call Davidson Law Group, P.A. for help today!

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