Monday Morning eBriefing

A summary of the latest customs and cross-border trade regulatory updates brought to you by our NCBFAA Customs Counsel firm Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg.

NCBFAA President Karen Damon on July 27 sent a letter drafted by Customs Committee leadership on behalf of our customs broker membership to Customs and Border Protection (CBP) raising the association’s questions and points of considerations for the agency when implementing the White House Executive Order 14411 to strengthen customs enforcement. “The brokerage community understands CBP’s enhanced role in supply chain enforcement and offers these comments to support this initiative in a manner that deters illicit cargo while promoting lawful trade,” Damon wrote. “We view the customs broker as having a critical role in supporting the E.O.”

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Aug. 3 will implement a new e214 error code for Post Admission Corrections validation to ACE Production environment, including adding new error code 237 and deleting 16 error codes which are no longer used.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Homeland Security's July 2026 Resource Guide to Trade Fraud Enforcement provides a blueprint of the Administration's aggressive enforcement of trade fraud, meticulously summarizing the statutory framework, agency roles and investigative tools that underpin federal customs enforcement. The guide does not only cover the usual areas of customs fraud — duty evasion, misclassification, undervaluation, and transshipment. Customs brokers should also pay close attention to how much space the Guide devotes to Partner Government Agency (PGA) violations.

NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking seeking public comment on possible revisions to the seafood import provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection Act. This is an initial information-gathering step. NMFS is not yet proposing specific regulatory changes.

It is with profound sadness that NCBFAA notifies our membership of the passing of John William James, former president of Savannah, Georgia-based John S. James Co., on July 18th at the age of 84.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will initiate a phased reopening of southern cattle ports, contingent on Mexico’s adherence to the Joint Action Plan. Starting Aug. 24, USDA will open the Douglas, Arizona port of entry to cattle trade, while simultaneously initiating the operational steps necessary for subsequent openings at the Santa Teresa and Columbus, New Mexico ports. Every animal entering the United States through these ports will undergo a full USDA inspection to ensure it is free of any signs of New World screwworm (NWS).

This Customs and Border Protection (CBP) guidance provides instructions for importers, customs brokers, and filers on submitting entries to CBP on imports subject to 10-12.5% Section 301 tariffs from 60 countries entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after 12:01 a.m. ET on July 24.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) announced July 23 that it will proceed with imposing Section 301 tariffs on products from 60 countries ranging from 10% to 12.5%, effective 12:01 a.m. ET on July 24. “Trading partners that have made commitments to adopt, and effectively enforce, forced labor import prohibitions will have a 10% tariff, and trading partners that have failed to adopt a forced labor import prohibition will have a 12.5% tariff rate,” USTR said in a statement.

The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has discontinued the APHIS Core Message Set Help Desk phone line. Stakeholder support will be provided exclusively through APHIS' help desk email at ace.itds@usda.gov. Since 2021, APHIS has provided a support desk phone line to assist stakeholders with navigating data reporting requirements.

To improve entry filing for medical device shipments, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) routinely provides customs brokers with medical device error reports, if the customs broker subscribes. Many customs brokers have found these reports to be an invaluable tool to sharpen their compliance.

A summary of the latest customs and cross-border trade regulatory updates brought to you by our NCBFAA Customs Counsel firm Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg.

A summary of the latest legislative and regulatory transport, logistics and trade sector updates brought to you by our NCBFAA Transportation Counsel firm Venable.

President Trump in a July 22 Truth Social post said in two years that a 100% tariff will be imposed on U.S. generic drug imports regardless of the country of export, with an increase to 200% in two years.

Following the agency's change in the definition of shellfish, the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) issued a series of questions and answers (FAQs) on the current requirements for importing or exporting shellfish. NCBFAA members who handle shellfish for their import-export clients should familiarize themselves with these FAQs.

On behalf of NCBFAA's Board of Directors, Leadership and Staff, we want to take a moment to acknowledge and welcome Hashrails, PortVelocity International, and Stable Software, which have recently joined our association. We're so excited to have these firms join our organization and we are happy to assist in any way we can!

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is reminding businesses to protect their Food Facility Registration (FFR) information from potential misuse. The agency has become aware of several issues regarding when registration is required and potential misuse of FFR.

Per ACE Entry Summary Create/Update CATAIR, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) affirmed that additional Importer Declaration (54 Records) are not required for Country of Origins US, VI, GU, AS, UM, PR, or MP for aluminum, steel or copper details after July 16. Prior to July 16, this information is still required.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) provided guidance to the trade regarding the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative’s action imposing 25% tariffs on all imports of Brazil, with certain exemptions, under Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act, effective July 22. Specifically, this guidance provides instructions to importers, customs brokers, and filers for submitting entries to CBP on articles which are imported from Brazil.

The U.S. and Jordanian governments in Washington, D.C., on July 21 signed an agreement on reciprocal trade. Among the benefits in the agreement, the White House said Jordan will continue to provide duty-free market access for almost all U.S. goods.