19 U.S.C. § 1321 — Administrative exemptions

submitted 96 years ago by ch. 497 to r/title-19-CUSTOMS-DUTIES · 440 words · no verdicts yet

in plain englishAI-generated · not legal advice

The Treasury Secretary may simplify or waive collection of small customs amounts and allow limited duty-free imports under regulations. The section permits exceptions and adds civil penalties for misuse.

(a) To avoid Government expense and inconvenience that would be out of proportion to the revenue involved, the Treasury Secretary may, by regulation—(1) ignore a difference of at least $20, or a higher amount set by regulation, between estimated or tentative duties, fees, and taxes and the amount actually due, including interest; (2) admit articles free of duty and import taxes when the total fair retail value in the exporting country of articles imported by one person in one day is no more than the regulatory amount, which cannot be below $100 for bona fide gifts ($200 for gifts from the Virgin Islands, Guam, or American Samoa), $200 for articles accompanying and for personal or household use by certain arriving people, or $800 in any other case. This privilege cannot be used by splitting one order or contract into separate shipments; and (3) waive duties, fees, taxes, and interest below $20, or a higher regulatory amount. (b) The Secretary may make regulatory exceptions to these exemptions when consistent with subsection (a), needed to protect revenue, or needed to prevent unlawful imports. (c) A person who uses this privilege to enter or introduce an article, or helps or attempts to do so, when the importation violates another customs law may be assessed a civil penalty of up to $5,000 for the first violation and up to $10,000 for each later violation, in addition to other lawful penalties.

the actual law source: uscode.house.gov ↗public domain

(a)

The Secretary of the Treasury, in order to avoid expense and inconvenience to the Government disproportionate to the amount of revenue that would otherwise be collected, is authorized, under such regulations as he shall prescribe, to—

(1)

disregard a difference of an amount specified by the Secretary by regulation, but not less than $20, between the total estimated duties, fees, and taxes deposited, or the total duties, fees, and taxes tentatively assessed, with respect to any entry of merchandise and the total amount of duties, fees, taxes, and interest actually accruing thereon;

(2)

admit articles free of duty and of any tax imposed on or by reason of importation, but the aggregate fair retail value in the country of shipment of articles imported by one person on one day and exempted from the payment of duty shall not exceed an amount specified by the Secretary by regulation, but not less than—

(A)

$100 in the case of articles sent as bona fide gifts from persons in foreign countries to persons in the United States ($200 in the case of articles sent as bona fide gifts from persons in the Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa), or

(B)

$200 in the case of articles accompanying, and for the personal or household use of, persons arriving in the United States who are not entitled to any exemption from duty under subheading 9804.00.30, 9804.00.65, or 9804.00.70 of title I of this Act,1 or

(C)

$800 in any other case.

The privilege of this subdivision (2) shall not be granted in any case in which merchandise covered by a single order or contract is forwarded in separate lots to secure the benefit of this subdivision (2); and

(3)

waive the collection of duties, fees, taxes, and interest due on entered merchandise when such duties, fees, taxes, or interest are less than $20 or such greater amount as may be specified by the Secretary by regulation.

(b)

The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized by regulations to prescribe exceptions to any exemption provided for in subsection (a) whenever he finds that such action is consistent with the purpose of subsection (a) or is necessary for any reason to protect the revenue or to prevent unlawful importations.

(c)

Any person who enters, introduces, facilitates, or attempts to introduce an article into the United States using the privilege of this section, the importation of which violates any other provision of United States customs law, shall be assessed, in addition to any other penalty permitted by law, a civil penalty of up to $5,000 for the first violation and up to $10,000 for each subsequent violation.

Source credit: (June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title III, § 321, as added June 25, 1938, ch. 679, § 7, 52 Stat. 1081; amended Aug. 8, 1953, ch. 397, § 13, 67 Stat. 515; Pub. L. 87–261, § 2(c), Sept. 21, 1961, 75 Stat. 541; Pub. L. 89–62, § 2, June 30, 1965, 79 Stat. 208; Pub. L. 93–618, title VI, § 610(a), Jan. 3, 1975, 88 Stat. 2075; Pub. L. 95–410, title II, § 205, Oct. 3, 1978, 92 Stat. 900; Pub. L. 97–446, title I, § 115(b), Jan. 12, 1983, 96 Stat. 2335; Pub. L. 100–418, title I, § 1214(h)(2), Aug. 23, 1988, 102 Stat. 1157; Pub. L. 103–182, title VI, § 651, Dec. 8, 1993, 107 Stat. 2209; Pub. L. 104–295, § 3(a)(8), (12), Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3516; Pub. L. 114–125, title IX, § 901(c), Feb. 24, 2016, 130 Stat. 223; Pub. L. 119–21, title VII, § 70531(a)(1), (b)(1), (2), July 4, 2025, 139 Stat. 283.)

history & why it existsrecord from the source credit

1930Enacted · Act of June 17, 1930, ch. 497 · 52 Stat. 1081
1953Amended · Act of Aug. 8, 1953, ch. 397 · 67 Stat. 515
1961Amended · Pub. L. 87-261 · 75 Stat. 541
1965Amended · Pub. L. 89-62 · 79 Stat. 208
1975Amended · Pub. L. 93-618 · 88 Stat. 2075
1978Amended · Pub. L. 95-410 · 92 Stat. 900
1983Amended · Pub. L. 97-446 · 96 Stat. 2335
1988Amended · Pub. L. 100-418 · 102 Stat. 1157
1993Amended · Pub. L. 103-182 · 107 Stat. 2209
1996Amended · Pub. L. 104-295 · 110 Stat. 3516
2016Amended · Pub. L. 114-125 · 130 Stat. 223
2025Amended · Pub. L. 119-21 · 139 Stat. 283

A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by ch. 497 on 1930-06-17.

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