The U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP) selects shipments at random for X-ray, Tailgate, or Intensive exams, so unfortunately, it’s not always possible to avoid exams. However, there are a couple of ways to minimize the risk:
- Pristine paperwork. Make sure that your paperwork matches up perfectly with your shipment. It’s important to ensure that you follow the customs requirements for Commercial Invoices and include; Importer of Record, manufacturer, Country of Origin, value of the items, currency used in the transaction, and complete product descriptions.
- Shipping FCL. It is possible to minimize the risk of a customs exam by shipping via FCL instead of LCL. LCL shipments are more likely to be flagged for X-ray exams than FCL shipments. Flexport’s in-house LCL service is selective about what goods are consolidated into an LCL shipment, so you’ll see a lower rate of inspection and delay.
When Customs exams do occur, your Flexport team will check on the shipment’s status continuously, and we’ll update you as we learn more.