Customs filings
CBP weighs foreign export documents for every U.S. import
CBP published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking on September 2, 2026 asking whether importers should provide foreign export documentation, more detail on the parties involved in an import, and supply-chain tracing data. Nothing is required yet: comments on docket USCBP-2026-1058 are due December 1, 2026.
What changed
CBP says the goal is to detect illicit imports, especially goods illegally transshipped through a third country to hide their true origin.
The foreign documents under discussion include the export declaration, the commercial invoice declared to the foreign customs authority, packing lists, certificates of origin, export licences and transport documents.
CBP asks whether the importer of record should transmit these at entry or keep them as records, and whether requirements should be phased by entry type, commodity, country or mode, with different timelines for small entities or high-volume filers.
What an import team should check
- Ask your suppliers and forwarders which export declarations, invoices and certificates of origin they already file with their own customs authority.
- Check whether your records could link each U.S. entry to its foreign export documents if CBP later requires it at entry or on request.
- Decide with your customs broker whether to comment on docket USCBP-2026-1058 before December 1, 2026, especially on phase-in and small-importer timelines.