Customs Brokers User Fee Payment for 2008

AGENCY:

Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security.

ACTION:

General notice.

SUMMARY:

This document provides notice to customs brokers that the annual fee of $138 that is assessed for each permit held by a broker, whether it may be an individual, partnership, association, or corporation, is due by February 15, 2008. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announces this date of payment for 2008 in accordance with the Tax Reform Act of 1986.

DATES:

Payment of the 2008 Customs Broker User Fee is due February 15, 2008.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Bruce Raine, Broker Compliance Branch, Trade Policy and Programs, (202) 863-6544.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

CBP Dec. 07-01 amended section 111.96 of title 19 of the Code of Federal Regulations (19 CFR 111.96) pursuant to the amendment of section 13031 of the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) of 1985 (19 U.S.C. 58c) by section 892 of the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004, to establish that effective April 1, 2007 an annual user fee of $138 is to be assessed for each customs broker permit and national permit held by an individual, partnership, association, or corporation.

The Customs and Border Protection (CBP) regulations provide that this fee is payable for each calendar year in each broker district where the broker was issued a permit to do business by the due date which is published in the Federal Register annually. See 19 CFR 24.22(h) and (i)(9). Broker districts are defined in the General Notice entitled, “Geographical Boundaries of Customs Brokerage, Cartage and Lighterage Districts” published in the Federal Register on September 27, 1995 (60 FR 49971).

Section 1893 of the Tax Reform Act of 1986 (Pub. L. 99-514) provides that notices of the date on which the payment is due for each broker permit shall be published by the Secretary of the Treasury in the Federal Register by no later than 60 days before such due date. Please note that section 403 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, 6 U.S.C. 101 et seq., (Pub. L. 107-296) and Treasury Department Order No. 100-16 (see Appendix to 19 CFR part 0) delegated general authority vested in the Secretary of the Treasury over customs revenue functions (with certain specified exceptions) to the Secretary of Homeland Security.

This document notifies customs brokers that for calendar year 2008, the due date for payment of the user fee is February 15, 2008. It is anticipated that for subsequent years, the annual user fee for customs brokers will be due on or about the twentieth of January of each year.