19 USC 1565 - Cartage

§ 1551. Bonding of carriers
§ 1551a. Bonded cartmen or lightermen
§ 1552. Entry for immediate transportation
§ 1553. Entry for transportation and exportation; lottery material from Canada
§ 1553-1. Report on in-bond cargo
§ 1553a. Recordkeeping for merchandise transported by pipeline
§ 1554. Transportation through contiguous countries
§ 1555. Bonded warehouses
§ 1556. Bonded warehouses; regulations for establishing
§ 1557. Entry for warehouse
§ 1558. No remission or refund after release of merchandise
§ 1559. Warehouse goods deemed abandoned after 5 years
§ 1560. Leasing of warehouses
§ 1561. Public stores
§ 1562. Manipulation in warehouse
§ 1563. Allowance for loss; abandonment of warehouse goods
§ 1564. Liens
§ 1565. Cartage

§ 1551. Bonding of carriers

Under such regulations and subject to such terms and conditions as the Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe—

(1) any common carrier of merchandise owning or operating a railroad, steamship, or other transportation line or route for the transportation of merchandise in the United States,

(2) any contract carrier authorized to operate as such by any agency of the United States, and

(3) any freight forwarder authorized to operate as such by any agency of the United States,

upon application, may, in the discretion of the Secretary, be designated as a carrier of bonded merchandise for the final release of which from customs custody a permit has not been issued. A private carrier, upon application, may, in the discretion of the Secretary, be designated under the preceding sentence as a carrier of bonded merchandise, subject to such regulations and, in the case of each applicant, to such special terms and conditions as the Secretary may prescribe to safeguard the revenues of the United States with respect to the transportation of bonded merchandise by such applicant.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 551, 46 Stat. 742; Dec. 28, 1945, ch. 605, 59 Stat. 667; Pub. L. 87–598, Aug. 24, 1962, 76 Stat. 400; Pub. L. 87–854, Oct. 23, 1962, 76 Stat. 1130; Pub. L. 90–240, § 3, Jan. 2, 1968, 81 Stat. 776.)

§ 1551a. Bonded cartmen or lightermen

The Secretary of the Treasury be, and he is, authorized, when it appears to him to be in the interest of commerce, and notwithstanding any provision of law or regulation requiring that the transportation of imported merchandise be by a bonded common carrier, to permit such merchandise which has been entered and examined for customs purposes to be transported by bonded cartmen or bonded lightermen between the ports of New York, Newark, and Perth Amboy, which are all included in Customs Collection District Numbered 10 (New York): Provided, That this resolution shall not be construed to deprive any of the ports affected of its rights and privileges as a port of entry.

(June 19, 1936, ch. 611, 49 Stat. 1538.)

§ 1552. Entry for immediate transportation

Any merchandise, other than explosives and merchandise the importation of which is prohibited, arriving at a port of entry in the United States may be entered, under such rules and regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury may prescribe, for transportation in bond without appraisement to any other port of entry designated by the consignee, or his agent, and by such bonded carrier as he designates, there to be entered in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 552, 46 Stat. 742.)

§ 1553. Entry for transportation and exportation; lottery material from Canada

(a) Any merchandise, other than explosives and merchandise the importation of which is prohibited, shown by the manifest, bill of lading, shipping receipt, or other document to be destined to a foreign country, may be entered for transportation in bond through the United States by a bonded carrier without appraisement or the payment of duties and exported under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe; and any baggage or personal effects not containing merchandise the importation of which is prohibited arriving in the United States destined to a foreign country may, upon the request of the owner or carrier having the same in possession for transportation, be entered for transportation in bond through the United States by a bonded carrier without appraisement or the payment of duty, under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury may prescribe. In places where no bonded common-carrier facilities are reasonably available, such merchandise may be so transported otherwise than by a bonded common carrier under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe.

(b) Notwithstanding subsection (a), the entry for transportation in bond through the United States of any lottery ticket, printed paper that may be used as a lottery ticket, or any advertisement of any lottery, that is printed in Canada, shall be permitted without appraisement or the payment of duties under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury may prescribe, except that such regulations shall not permit the transportation of lottery materials in the personal baggage of a traveler.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 553, 46 Stat. 742; June 25, 1938, ch. 679, § 21, 52 Stat. 1087; Pub. L. 101–382, title III, § 484H(a), Aug. 20, 1990, 104 Stat. 711.)

§ 1553–1. Report on in-bond cargo

(a) Report

Not later than June 30, 2007, the Commissioner shall submit a report to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, the Committee on Finance of the Senate, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate, the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives that includes—

(1) a plan for closing in-bond entries at the port of arrival;

(2) an assessment of the personnel required to ensure 100 percent reconciliation of in-bond entries between the port of arrival and the port of destination or exportation;

(3) an assessment of the status of investigations of overdue in-bond shipments and an evaluation of the resources required to ensure adequate investigation of overdue in-bond shipments;

(4) a plan for tracking in-bond cargo within the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE);

(5) an assessment of whether any particular technologies should be required in the transport of in-bond cargo;

(6) an assessment of whether ports of arrival should require any additional information regarding shipments of in-bond cargo;

(7) an evaluation of the criteria for targeting and examining in-bond cargo; and

(8) an assessment of the feasibility of reducing the transit time for in-bond shipments, including an assessment of the impact of such a change on domestic and international trade.

(b) Definition

In this section, the term “Commissioner” means the Commissioner responsible for the United States Customs and Border Protection in the Department of Homeland Security.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 553A, as added Pub. L. 109–347, title IV, § 406, Oct. 13, 2006, 120 Stat. 1931.)

§ 1553a. Recordkeeping for merchandise transported by pipeline

Merchandise in Customs 1

1 So in original. Probably should not be capitalized.

custody that is transported by pipeline may be accounted for on a quantitative basis, based on the bill of lading, or equivalent document of receipt, issued by the pipeline carrier. Unless the Customs Service has reasonable cause to suspect fraud, the Customs Service may accept the bill of lading, or equivalent document of receipt, issued by the pipeline carrier to the shipper and accepted by the consignee to maintain identity. The shipper, pipeline operator, and consignee shall be subject to the recordkeeping requirements of sections 1508 and 1509 of this title.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 553A, as added Pub. L. 103–182, title VI, § 664, Dec. 8, 1993, 107 Stat. 2215.)

§ 1554. Transportation through contiguous countries

With the consent of the proper authorities, imported merchandise, in bond or duty-paid, and products and manufactures of the United States may be transported from one port to another in the United States through contiguous countries, under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe, unless such transportation is in violation of section 4347 of the Revised Statutes, as amended, section 55102 of title 46, or section 1588 of this title.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 554, 46 Stat. 743.)

§ 1555. Bonded warehouses

(a) Designation; preconditions; bonding requirements; supervision

Subject to subsection (b), buildings or parts of buildings and other enclosures may be designated by the Secretary of the Treasury as bonded warehouses for the storage of imported merchandise entered for warehousing, or taken possession of by the appropriate customs officer, or under seizure, or for the manufacture of merchandise in bond, or for the repacking, sorting, or cleaning of imported merchandise. Such warehouses may be bonded for the storing of such merchandise only as shall belong or be consigned to the owners or proprietors thereof and be known as private bonded warehouses, or for the storage of imported merchandise generally and be known as public bonded warehouses. Before any imported merchandise not finally released from customs custody shall be stored in any such premises, the owner or lessee thereof shall give a bond in such sum and with such sureties as may be approved by the Secretary of the Treasury to secure the Government against any loss or expense connected with or arising from the deposit, storage, or manipulation of merchandise in such warehouse. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, bonded warehouses shall be used solely for the storage of imported merchandise and shall be placed in charge of a proper officer of the customs, who, together with the proprietor thereof, shall have joint custody of all merchandise stored in the warehouse; and all labor on the merchandise so stored shall be performed by the owner or proprietor of the warehouse, under supervision of the officer of the customs in charge of the same, at the expense of the owner or proprietor. The compensation of such officer of the customs and other customs employees appointed to supervise the receipt of merchandise into any such warehouse and deliveries therefrom shall be reimbursed to the Government by the proprietor of such warehouse.

(b) Duty-free sales enterprises

(1) Duty-free sales enterprises may sell and deliver for export from the customs territory duty-free merchandise in accordance with this subsection and such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe to carry out this subsection.

(2) A duty-free sales enterprise may be located anywhere within—

(A) the same port of entry, as established under section 1 of the Act of August 24, 1912 (37 Stat. 434), from which a purchaser of duty-free merchandise departs the customs territory; or

(B) 25 statute miles from the exit point through which the purchaser of duty-free merchandise will depart the customs territory; or

(C) a port of entry, as established under section 1 of the Act of August 24, 1912 (37 Stat. 434), or within 25 statute miles of a staffed port of entry if reasonable assurance can be provided that duty-free merchandise sold by the enterprise will be exported by individuals departing from the customs territory through an international airport located within the customs territory.

(3) Each duty-free sales enterprise—

(A) shall establish procedures to provide reasonable assurance that duty-free merchandise sold by the enterprise will be exported from the customs territory;

(B) if the duty-free sales enterprise is an airport store, shall establish and enforce, in accordance with such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, restrictions on the sale of duty-free merchandise to any one individual to personal use quantities;

(C) shall display in prominent places within its place of business notices which state clearly that any duty-free merchandise purchased from the enterprise—

(i) has not been subject to any Federal duty or tax,

(ii) if brought back into the customs territory, must be declared and is subject to Federal duty and tax, and

(iii) is subject to the customs laws and regulation of any foreign country to which it is taken;

(D) shall not be required to mark or otherwise place a distinguishing identifier on individual items of merchandise to indicate that the items were sold by a duty-free sales enterprise, unless the Secretary finds a pattern in which such items are being brought back into the customs territory without declaration;

(E) may unpack merchandise into saleable units after it has been entered for warehouse and placed in a duty-free sales enterprise, without requirement of further permits; and

(F) shall deliver duty-free merchandise—

(i) in the case of a duty-free sales enterprise that is an airport store—(I) to the purchaser (or a family member or companion traveling with the purchaser) in an area that is within the airport and to which access to passengers is restricted to those departing from the customs territory;(II) to the purchaser (or a family member or companion traveling with the purchaser) at the exit point of a specific departing flight;(III) by placing the merchandise within the aircraft on which the purchaser will depart for carriage as passenger baggage; or(IV) if the duty-free sales enterprise has made a good faith effort to effect delivery for exportation through one of the methods described in subclause (I), (II), or (III) but is unable to do so, by any other reasonable method to effect delivery; or

(ii) in the case of a duty-free sales enterprise that is a border store—(I) at a merchandise storage location at or beyond the exit point; or(II) at any location approved by the Secretary before the date of enactment of the Omnibus Trade Act of 1987.

(4) If a State or local or other governmental authority, incident to its jurisdiction over any airport, seaport, or other exit point facility, requires that a concession or other form of approval be obtained from that authority with respect to the operation of a duty-free sales enterprise under which merchandise is delivered to or through such facility for exportation, merchandise incident to such operation may not be withdrawn from a bonded warehouse and transferred to or through such facility unless the operator of the duty-free sales enterprise demonstrates to the Secretary that the concession or approval required for the enterprise has been obtained.

(5) This subsection does not prohibit a duty-free sales enterprise from offering for sale and delivering to, or on behalf of, individuals departing from the customs territory merchandise other than duty-free merchandise, except that such other merchandise may not be stored in a bonded warehouse facility other than a bonded facility used for retail sales.

(6)

(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), merchandise that is purchased in a duty-free sales enterprise is not eligible for exemption from duty under subchapter IV of chapter 98 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States if such merchandise is brought back to the customs territory.

(B) Except in the case of travel involving transit to, from, or through an insular possession of the United States, merchandise described in subparagraph (A) that is purchased by a United States resident shall be eligible for exemption from duty under subheadings 9804.00.65, 9804.00.70, and 9804.00.72 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States upon the United States resident’s return to the customs territory of the United States, if the resident meets the eligibility requirements for the exemption claimed. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, such merchandise shall be considered to be an article acquired abroad as an incident of the journey from which the resident is returning, for purposes of determining eligibility for any such exemption.

(7) The Secretary shall by regulation establish a separate class of bonded warehouses for duty-free sales enterprises. Regulations issued to carry out this paragraph shall take into account the unique characteristics of the different types of duty-free sales enterprises.

(8) For purposes of this subsection—

(A) The term “airport store” means a duty-free sales enterprise which delivers merchandise to, or on behalf of, individuals departing from the customs territory from an international airport located within the customs territory.

(B) The term “border store” means a duty-free sales enterprise which delivers merchandise to, or on behalf of, individuals departing from the customs territory through a land or water border by a means of conveyance other than an aircraft.

(D) The term “duty-free sales enterprise” means a person that sells, for use outside the customs territory, duty-free merchandise that is delivered from a bonded warehouse to an airport or other exit point for exportation by, or on behalf of, individuals departing from the customs territory.

(E)

(F) The term “exit point” means the area in close proximity to an actual exit for departing from the customs territory, including the gate holding area in the case of an airport, but only if there is reasonable assurance that duty-free merchandise delivered in the gate holding area will be exported from the customs territory.

(G) The term “personal use quantities” means quantities that are only suitable for uses other than resale, and includes reasonable quantities for household or family consumption as well as for gifts to others.

(1) DefinitionsFor purposes of this section—

(A) the term “international travel merchandise” means duty-free or domestic merchandise which is placed on board aircraft on international flights for sale to passengers, but which is not merchandise incidental to the operation of a duty-free sales enterprise;

(B) the term “staging area” is an area controlled by the proprietor of a bonded warehouse outside of the physical parameters of the bonded warehouse in which manipulation of international travel merchandise in carts occurs;

(C) the term “duty-free merchandise” means merchandise on which the liability for payment of duty or tax imposed by reason of importation has been deferred pending exportation from the customs territory;

(D) the term “manipulation” means the repackaging, cleaning, sorting, or removal from or placement on carts of international travel merchandise; and

(E) the term “cart” means a portable container holding international travel merchandise on an aircraft for exportation.

(2) Bonded warehouse for international travel merchandise

The Secretary shall by regulation establish a separate class of bonded warehouse for the storage and manipulation of international travel merchandise pending its placement on board aircraft departing for foreign destinations.

(3) Rules for treatment of international travel merchandise and bonded warehouses and staging areas

(A) The proprietor of a bonded warehouse established for the storage and manipulation of international travel merchandise shall give a bond in such sum and with such sureties as may be approved by the Secretary of the Treasury to secure the Government against any loss or expense connected with or arising from the deposit, storage, or manipulation of merchandise in such warehouse. The warehouse proprietor’s bond shall also secure the manipulation of international travel merchandise in a staging area.

(B) A transfer of liability from the international carrier to the warehouse proprietor occurs when the carrier assigns custody of international travel merchandise to the warehouse proprietor for purposes of entry into warehouse or for manipulation in the staging area.

(C) A transfer of liability from the warehouse proprietor to the international carrier occurs when the bonded warehouse proprietor assigns custody of international travel merchandise to the carrier.

(D) The Secretary is authorized to promulgate regulations to require the proprietor and the international carrier to keep records of the disposition of any cart brought into the United States and all merchandise on such cart.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 555, 46 Stat. 743; Pub. L. 91–271, title III, § 301(b), June 2, 1970, 84 Stat. 287; Pub. L. 98–573, title II, § 211, Oct. 30, 1984, 98 Stat. 2977; Pub. L. 100–418, title I, § 1908(b), Aug. 23, 1988, 102 Stat. 1315; Pub. L. 101–382, title I, § 139(a)(1), Aug. 20, 1990, 104 Stat. 653; Pub. L. 104–295, § 29, Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3535; Pub. L. 106–36, title II, § 2417, June 25, 1999, 113 Stat. 176; Pub. L. 106–476, title I, § 1454, Nov. 9, 2000, 114 Stat. 2168.)

§ 1556. Bonded warehouses; regulations for establishing

The Secretary of the Treasury shall from time to time establish such rules and regulations as may be necessary for the establishment of bonded warehouses and to protect the interests of the Government in the conduct, management, and operation of such warehouses and in the withdrawal of and accounting for merchandise deposited therein.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 556, 46 Stat. 743.)

§ 1557. Entry for warehouse

(a) Withdrawal of merchandise; time; payment of charges

(1) Any merchandise subject to duty (including international travel merchandise), with the exception of perishable articles and explosive substances other than firecrackers, may be entered for warehousing and be deposited in a bonded warehouse at the expense and risk of the owner 1

1 So in original. Probably should be followed by a comma.

purchaser, importer, or consignee. Such merchandise may be withdrawn, at any time within 5 years from the date of importation, or such longer period of time as the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection may at its discretion permit upon proper request being filed and good cause shown, for consumption upon payment of the duties and charges accruing thereon at the rate of duty imposed by law upon such merchandise at the date of withdrawal; or may be withdrawn for exportation or for transportation and exportation to a foreign country, or for shipment or for transportation and shipment to the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Wake Island, Midway Islands, Kingman Reef, Johnston Island, or the island of Guam, without the payment of duties thereon, or for transportation and rewarehousing at another port or elsewhere, or for transfer to another bonded warehouse at the same port; except that—

(A) the total period of time for which such merchandise may remain in bonded warehouse shall not exceed 5 years from the date of importation or such longer period of time as the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection may at its discretion permit upon proper request being filed and good cause shown; and

(B) turbine fuel may be withdrawn for use under section 1309 of this title without the payment of duty if an amount equal to the quantity of fuel withdrawn is shown to be used within 30 days after the day of withdrawal, but duties (together with interest payable from the date of the withdrawal at the rate of interest established under section 6621 of title 26) shall be deposited by the 40th day after the day of withdrawal on fuel that was withdrawn in excess of the quantity shown to have been so used during such 30-day period.

(2) Merchandise upon which the duties have been paid and which shall have remained continuously in bonded warehouse or otherwise in the custody and under the control of customs officers, may be entered or withdrawn at any time within 5 years after the date of importation, or such longer period of time as the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection may at its discretion permit upon proper request being filed and good cause shown, for exportation or for transportation and exportation to a foreign country, or for shipment or for transportation and shipment to the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Wake Island, Midway Islands, Kingman Reef, Johnston Island, or the island of Guam, under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe, and upon such entry or withdrawal, and exportation or shipment, the duties thereon shall be refunded.

(b) Transferal of right of withdrawal

The right to withdraw any merchandise entered in accordance with subsection (a) of this section for the purposes specified in such subsection may be transferred upon compliance with regulations prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury and upon the filing by the transferee of a bond in such amount and containing such conditions as the Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe. The bond shall include an obligation to pay, with respect to the merchandise the subject of the transfer, all unpaid regular, increased, and additional duties, all unpaid taxes imposed upon or by reason of importation, and all unpaid charges and exactions. Such transfers shall be irrevocable, shall relieve the transferor from all customs liability with respect to obligations assumed by the transferee under the bond herein provided for, and shall confer upon the transferee all rights to the privileges provided for in this section and in sections 1562 and 1563 of this title which were vested in the transferor prior to the transfer. The transferee shall also have the right to receive all lawful refunds of money paid by him to the United States with respect to the merchandise the subject of the transfer, and shall have the right to file a protest under section 1514 of this title to the same extent that such right would have been available to the transferor. Notice of liquidation shall be given to the transferee in the form and manner prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury. A transferee may further transfer the right to withdraw merchandise, subject to the provisions of this subsection relating to original transfers.

Merchandise entered under bond, under any provision of law, may, upon payment of all charges other than duty on the merchandise, be destroyed, at the request and at the expense of the consignee, within the bonded period under customs supervision, in lieu of exportation, and upon such destruction the entry of such merchandise shall be liquidated without payment of duty and any duties collected shall be refunded.

(d) Withdrawal before payment

Merchandise may be withdrawn for consumption without the payment of the duty thereon if the importer of record or transferee is permitted to pay duty at a later time pursuant to regulations prescribed by the Secretary under section 1505 of this title.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 557, 46 Stat. 744; June 25, 1938, ch. 679, §§ 2, 22(a), 23(a), 52 Stat. 1077, 1087, 1088; Aug. 8, 1953, ch. 397, § 21(a), 67 Stat. 519; June 30, 1955, ch. 258, § 2(a) (4), 69 Stat. 242; Pub. L. 91–271, title III, § 301(t), June 2, 1970, 84 Stat. 290; Pub. L. 91–685, § 1, Jan. 12, 1971, 84 Stat. 2069; Pub. L. 95–410, title I, § 108(a), (b)(1), Oct. 3, 1978, 92 Stat. 892; Pub. L. 97–446, title II, § 201(f), Jan. 12, 1983, 96 Stat. 2350; Pub. L. 103–182, title VI, § 665, Dec. 8, 1993, 107 Stat. 2215; Pub. L. 106–36, title II, § 2409, June 25, 1999, 113 Stat. 171; Pub. L. 109–280, title XIV, § 1635(c), Aug. 17, 2006, 120 Stat. 1170.)

§ 1558. No remission or refund after release of merchandise

(a) Exceptions

No remission, abatement, refund, or drawback of estimated or liquidated duty shall be allowed because of the exportation or destruction of any merchandise after its release from the custody of the Government, except in the following cases:

(1) When articles are exported with respect to which a drawback of duties is expressly provided for by law;

(2) When prohibited articles have been regularly entered in good faith and are subsequently exported or destroyed pursuant to a law of the United States and under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury may prescribe; and

(3) When articles entered under bond, under any provision of law, are destroyed within the bonded period as provided for in section 1557 of this title, or are destroyed within the bonded period by death, accidental fire, or other casualty, and proof of such destruction is furnished which shall be satisfactory to the Secretary of the Treasury, in which case any accrued duties shall be remitted or refunded and any condition in the bond that the articles shall be exported shall be deemed to have been satisfied.

(b) Payment of duties required notwithstanding export or destruction of articles; exception

When articles are exported or destroyed under customs supervision after once having been released from customs custody, as provided for in subsection (h) 1

1 See References in Text note below.

of section 1304 of this title, such exportation or destruction shall not exempt such articles from the payment of duties other than the marking duty provided for in such subsection (h).

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 558, 46 Stat. 744; June 25, 1938, ch. 679, § 24, 52 Stat. 1088; Pub. L. 106–36, title I, § 1001(b)(9), June 25, 1999, 113 Stat. 132.)

§ 1559. Warehouse goods deemed abandoned after 5 years

Merchandise upon which any duties or charges are unpaid, remaining in bonded warehouse beyond 5 years from the date of importation, or such longer period of time as the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection may at its discretion permit upon proper request being filed and good cause shown, shall be regarded as abandoned to the Government and shall be sold under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe, and the proceeds of sale paid into the Treasury, as in the case of unclaimed merchandise covered by section 1493 of this title, subject to the payment to the owner or consignee of such amount, if any, as shall remain after deduction of duties, charges, and expenses. Merchandise upon which all duties and charges have been paid, remaining in bonded warehouse beyond 5 years from the date of importation, or such longer period of time as the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection may at its discretion permit upon proper request being filed and good cause shown, shall be held to be no longer in the custody or control of the officers of the customs.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 559, 46 Stat. 744; June 25, 1938, ch. 679, § 23(a), 52 Stat. 1088; Pub. L. 95–410, title I, § 108(b)(1), Oct. 3, 1978, 92 Stat. 892; Pub. L. 109–280, title XIV, § 1635(d), Aug. 17, 2006, 120 Stat. 1170.)

§ 1560. Leasing of warehouses

The Secretary of the Treasury may cause to be set aside any available space in a building used as a customhouse for the storage of bonded merchandise or may lease premises for the storage of unclaimed merchandise or other imported merchandise required to be stored by the Government, and set aside a portion of such leased premises for the storage of bonded merchandise: Provided, That no part of any premises owned or leased by the Government may be used for the storage of bonded merchandise at any port at which a public bonded warehouse has been established and is in operation. All the premises so leased shall be leased on public account and the storage and other charges shall be deposited and accounted for as customs receipts, and the rates therefor shall not be less than the charges for storage and similar services made at such port of entry by commercial concerns for the storage and handling of merchandise. No officer of the customs shall own, in whole or in part, any bonded warehouse or enter into any contract or agreement for the lease or use of any building to be thereafter erected as a public store or warehouse. No lease of any building to be so used shall be taken for a longer period than three years, nor shall rent for any such premises be paid, in whole or in part, in advance.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 560, 46 Stat. 745; Pub. L. 91–271, title III, § 301(u), June 2, 1970, 84 Stat. 290.)

§ 1561. Public stores

Any premises owned or leased by the Government and used for the storage of merchandise for the final release of which from customs custody a permit has not been issued shall be known as a “public store.”

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 561, 46 Stat. 745.)

§ 1562. Manipulation in warehouseMerchandise shall only be withdrawn from a bonded warehouse in such quantity and in such condition as the Secretary of the Treasury shall by regulation prescribe. Upon permission being granted by the Secretary of the Treasury, and under customs supervision, at the expense of the proprietor, merchandise may be cleaned, sorted, repacked, or otherwise changed in condition, but not manufactured, in bonded warehouses established for that purpose and be withdrawn therefrom—

(1) without payment of duties for exportation to a USMCA country, as defined in section 4502 of this title, if the merchandise is of a kind described in any of paragraphs (1) through (8) of section 4534(a) of this title;

(2) for exportation to a USMCA country if the merchandise consists of goods subject to USMCA drawback, as defined in section 4534(a) of this title, except that—

(A) the merchandise may not be withdrawn from warehouse without assessment of a duty on the merchandise in its condition and quantity, and at its weight, at the time of withdrawal from the warehouse with such additions to or deductions from the final appraised value as may be necessary by reason of change in condition, and

(B) duty shall be paid on the merchandise before the 61st day after the date of exportation, but upon the presentation, before such 61st day, of satisfactory evidence of the amount of any customs duties paid to the USMCA country on the merchandise, the customs duty may be waived or reduced (subject to section 4534(e) of this title) in an amount that does not exceed the lesser of—

(i) the total amount of customs duties paid or owed on the merchandise on importation into the United States, or

(ii) the total amount of customs duties paid on the merchandise to the USMCA country;

(3) without payment of duties for exportation to any foreign country other than to Chile, to a USMCA country, or to Canada when exports to that country are subject to paragraph (4);

(4) without payment of duties for exportation to Canada (if that country ceases to be a USMCA country and the suspension of the operation of the United States-Canada Free-Trade Agreement thereafter terminates), but the exemption from the payment of duties under this paragraph applies only in the case of an exportation during the period such Agreement is in operation of merchandise that—

(A) is only cleaned, sorted, or repacked in a bonded warehouse, or

(B) is a drawback eligible good under section 204(a) of the United States-Canada Free-Trade Agreement Implementation Act of 1988;

(5) without payment of duties for shipment to the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Wake Island, Midway Island, Kingman Reef, Johnston Island or the island of Guam; and

(6)

(A) without payment of duties for exportation to Chile, if the merchandise is of a kind described in any of paragraphs (1) through (5) of section 203(a) of the United States-Chile Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act; and

(B) for exportation to Chile if the merchandise consists of goods subject to Chile FTA drawback, as defined in section 203(a) of the United States-Chile Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act, except that—

(i) the merchandise may not be withdrawn from warehouse without assessment of a duty on the merchandise in its condition and quantity, and at its weight, at the time of withdrawal from the warehouse with such additions to, or deductions from, the final appraised value as may be necessary by reason of a change in condition, and

(ii) duty shall be paid on the merchandise before the 61st day after the date of exportation, except that such duties may be waived or reduced by—(I) 100 percent during the 8-year period beginning on January 1, 2004,(II) 75 percent during the 1-year period beginning on January 1, 2012,(III) 50 percent during the 1-year period beginning on January 1, 2013, and(IV) 25 percent during the 1-year period beginning on January 1, 2014.

Merchandise may be withdrawn from bonded warehouse for consumption, or for exportation to Canada if the duty exemption under paragraph (4) of the preceding sentence does not apply, upon the payment of duties accruing thereon, in its condition and quantity, and at its weight, at the time of withdrawal from warehouse, with such additions to or deductions from the final appraised value as may be necessary by reason of change in condition. The basis for the assessment of duties on such merchandise so withdrawn for consumption shall be the adjusted final appraised value, and if the rate of duty is based upon or regulated in any manner by the value of the merchandise, such rate shall be based upon or regulated by such adjusted final appraised value. The scouring or carbonizing of wool shall not be considered a process of manufacture within the provisions of this section. Under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe, imported merchandise which has been entered and which has remained in continuous customs custody may be manipulated in accordance with the provisions of this section under customs supervision and at the risk and expense of the consignee, but elsewhere than in a bonded warehouse, in cases where neither the protection of the revenue nor the proper conduct of customs business requires that such manipulation be done in bonded warehouse.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 562, 46 Stat. 745; June 25, 1938, ch. 679, §§ 2, 25, 52 Stat. 1077, 1088; Aug. 8, 1953, ch. 397, § 18(f), 67 Stat. 518; June 30, 1955, ch. 258, § 2(a)(5), 69 Stat. 242; Pub. L. 91–271, title III, § 301(b), June 2, 1970, 84 Stat. 287; Pub. L. 100–449, title II, § 204(c)(4), Sept. 28, 1988, 102 Stat. 1863; Pub. L. 103–182, title II, § 203(b)(4), Dec. 8, 1993, 107 Stat. 2090; Pub. L. 108–77, title II, § 203(b)(4), Sept. 3, 2003, 117 Stat. 928; Pub. L. 109–280, title XIV, § 1635(e), Aug. 17, 2006, 120 Stat. 1170; Pub. L. 116–113, title V, § 501(e)(4), Jan. 29, 2020, 134 Stat. 69; Pub. L. 116–260, div. O, title VI, § 601(c)(2)(A)(iv), Dec. 27, 2020, 134 Stat. 2150.)

§ 1563. Allowance for loss; abandonment of warehouse goods

(a) Abatement or allowance for deterioration, loss or damage to merchandise in customs custody; exception

In no case shall there be any abatement or allowance made in the duties for any injury, deterioration, loss, or damage sustained by any merchandise while remaining in customs custody, except that the Secretary of the Treasury is authorized, upon production of proof satisfactory to him of the loss or theft of any merchandise while in the appraiser’s stores, or of the actual injury or destruction, in whole or in part, of any merchandise by accidental fire or other casualty, while in bonded warehouse, or in the appraiser’s stores, or while in transportation under bond, or while in the custody of the officers of the customs, although not in bond, or while within the limits of any port of entry and before having been landed under the supervision of the officers of the customs, to abate or refund, as the case may be, the duties upon such merchandise, in whole or in part, and to pay any such refund out of any moneys in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, and to cancel any warehouse bond or bonds, or enter satisfaction thereon in whole or in part, as the case may be, but no abatement or refund shall be made in respect of injury or destruction of any merchandise in bonded warehouse occurring after the expiration of three years from the date of importation. The decision of the Secretary of the Treasury as to the abatement or refund of the duties on any such merchandise shall be final and conclusive upon all persons.

The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to prescribe such regulations as he may deem necessary to carry out the provisions of this subdivision and he may by such regulations limit the time within which proof of loss, theft, injury, or destruction shall be submitted, and may provide for the abatement or refund of duties, as authorized herein, by appropriate customs officers in cases in which the amount of the abatement or refund claimed is less than $25 and in which the importer has agreed to abide by the decision of the customs officer. The decision of the customs officer in any such case shall be final and conclusive upon all persons.

(b) Abandonment of merchandise to Government; remittal or refund of duties paid

Under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury may prescribe and subject to any conditions imposed thereby the consignee may at any time within three years from the date of original importation, abandon to the Government any merchandise in bonded warehouse, whereupon any duties on such merchandise may be remitted or refunded as the case may be, but any merchandise so abandoned shall not be less than an entire package and shall be abandoned in the original package without having been repacked while in a bonded warehouse (other than a bonded manipulating warehouse).

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 563, 46 Stat. 746; June 25, 1938, ch. 679, § 23(a), 52 Stat. 1088; Pub. L. 91–271, title III, § 301(v), June 2, 1970, 84 Stat. 290.)

§ 1564. Liens

Whenever a customs officer shall be notified in writing of the existence of a lien for freight, charges, or contribution in general average upon any imported merchandise sent to the appraiser’s store for examination, entered for warehousing or taken possession of by him, he shall refuse to permit delivery thereof from public store or bonded warehouse until proof shall be produced that the said lien has been satisfied or discharged. The rights of the United States shall not be prejudiced or affected by the filing of such lien, nor shall the United States or its officers be liable for losses or damages consequent upon such refusal to permit delivery. If merchandise, regarding which such notice of lien has been filed, shall be forfeited or abandoned and sold, the freight, charges, or contribution in general average due thereon shall be paid from the proceeds of such sale in the same manner as other lawful charges and expenses are paid therefrom. The provisions of this section shall apply to licensed customs brokers who otherwise possess a lien for the purposes stated above upon the merchandise under the statutes or common law, or by order of any court of competent jurisdiction, of any State.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 564, 46 Stat. 747; Pub. L. 91–271, title III, § 301(w), June 2, 1970, 84 Stat. 290; Pub. L. 98–573, title II, § 212(c)(A), formerly § 212(b)(7)(A), Oct. 30, 1984, 98 Stat. 2984, renumbered Pub. L. 99–514, title XVIII, § 1889(3), Oct. 22, 1986, 100 Stat. 2925.)

§ 1565. Cartage

The cartage of merchandise entered for warehouse shall be done by—

(1) cartmen appointed and licensed by the Customs Service; or

(2) carriers designated under section 1551 of this title to carry bonded merchandise;

who shall give bond, in a penal sum to be fixed by the Customs Service, for the protection of the Government against any loss of, or damage to, the merchandise while being so carted. The cartage of merchandise designated for examination at the appraiser’s stores and of merchandise taken into custody by the customs officer as unclaimed shall be performed by such persons as may be designated, under contract or otherwise, by the Secretary of the Treasury, and under such regulations for the protection of the owners thereof and of the revenue as the Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 565, 46 Stat. 747; Pub. L. 91–271, title III, § 301(x), June 2, 1970, 84 Stat. 290; Pub. L. 103–182, title VI, § 666, Dec. 8, 1993, 107 Stat. 2215.)