Monday Morning eBriefing

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) outlined their Human Foods Program 2026 Priority Deliverables in late January. Included are the following goals relating to imported food safety. Note the emphasis on imported seafood, particularly shrimp.

The NCBFAA Regulatory Agencies Committee (RAC) met with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to discuss customs broker concerns over import processing delays following the launch of ImportShield (formerly called National Entry Review) in August. The agency explained that the recent announcement of ImportShield was simply a name change, replacing the previous name of NER.

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

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) notified the trade on Feb. 4 of an updated ACE Cargo Release CATAIR document which includes the SE15 Note 1 for the Air Master Bill of Lading and Deployment of the updated validation rule logic (rule 029).

The U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) on Feb. 4 announced the publication of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (2026) Revision 2. The HTS changes were approved by the Committee for Statistical Annotation of Tariff Schedules, better known as the 484(f) Committee, and took effect Feb. 1.

Customs and Border Protection has recently updated its chart for unstacking certain tariffs, with specific focus on semiconductors to reflect that IEEPA China tariffs do not stack.

On behalf of NCBFAA's Board of Directors, Leadership and Staff, we want to take a moment to acknowledge and welcome Anna Hebrowska dba AFIC, Apex Premier Brokerage, Open Waters Brokerage, Rope International Logistics, Tru Identity, and Selamawit Gebrehiywet dba Addis Global Trade Services 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!

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in a notice to the trade said registration for the April 22 Customs Broker License Exam (CBLE) will open Monday, Feb. 9, at 12:01 a.m. ET and close on Wednesday, March 11, at 4:30 p.m. ET. Registration links can be found on the Customs Brokers webpage of CBP.gov in the “Customs Broker License Exam Information” section.

The NCBFAA Customs Committee and Counsel of Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A., will continue to provide our customs broker members with pertinent details regarding the latest action by the Trump Administration to impose IEEPA tariffs on other countries’ products if they are shipping oil and related products to Cuba, as well as the reset of tariffs on imports of automobiles, lumber, pharmaceuticals, and “other” reciprocal tariffs for South Korea to 25% for failure to enact the July 30, 2025 trade deal reached between the two countries and the new Section 232 metals valuation court case. Meanwhile, the Committee will send our members additional Trump Administration tariff updates and subsequent Customs and Border Protection (CBP) guidance, as soon as received.

President Trump on Jan. 28 designated Laura DiBella to serve as Chairman of the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC). Chairman DiBella was sworn in as a FMC Commissioner on Jan. 6, 2026. She was nominated by President Trump on Sept. 3, 2025, and confirmed by the Senate on Dec. 18, 2025, to serve a term that expires on June 30, 2028.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Trade Relations has provided useful resources for members who are preparing for the April 22 Customs Broker License Exam (CBLE).

If you're planning to attend the 2026 NCBFAA Annual Conference at the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa, on April 12-15, you need to register today! There are only a few registration openings left. While registration for this industry-leading event officially ends March 27, we anticipate closing registration in the next couple weeks.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) released a list of approximately 600 HTS codes that will be flagged for CPSC certificate eFiling. These are the codes that are likely to include a product subject to a mandatory CPSC standard or are otherwise deemed to be high risk.

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

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Jan. 29 announced the addition of qualified parties eligible to pay duties on international mail shipments in accordance with Executive Order 14324, “Suspending Duty-Free De Minimis Treatment for All Countries,” which eliminated de minimis treatment for international mail.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued a Withhold Release Order (WRO) against coffee harvested by Finca Monte Grande, a Mexican coffee farm. Effective immediately, CBP at all U.S. ports of entry will detain coffee harvested by Finca Monte Grande, the agency said.

On behalf of NCBFAA's Board of Directors, Leadership and Staff, we want to take a moment to acknowledge and welcome Brenda Medina CHB, Customs Logistics Services Inc., Dustin P Chu, Fly Wings Express USA Inc., MP Custom Brokers, Inc., and Supply Chain Compliance LLC 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!

As part of the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) updated Forced Labor Website, the agency has enhanced the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) Enforcement Statistics Dashboard. The dashboard provides stakeholders with transparent, up-to-date data on shipments stopped, released, denied, or pending decision due to UFLPA enforcement.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reminded the trade that starting Feb. 6 the agency will issue all refunds electronically via Automated Clearing House (ACH). To prepare for Feb. 6, CBP said it “strongly encourages the trade community to review CBP’s extensive resources related to the transition to all electronic refunds and take any necessary action.”

The Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Field Operations announced it will host a webinar on Feb. 19 at 12:00 p.m. ET, titled Wood Packaging Materials (WPM): Navigating Compliance. This webinar will take a deeper dive into the steps stakeholders should follow when they receive an Emergency Action Notification (EAN).