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Title 19 — Customs DutiesRelease 119-73not60

§1451 Extra Compensation 11 See Codification Note Below.

Title 19 › Chapter 4— TARIFF ACT OF 1930 › Subtitle SUBTITLE III— ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS › Part II— Report, Entry, and Unlading of Vessels and Vehicles › § 1451

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

Before a special license to unload a ship or vehicle at night, on a Sunday, or on a holiday is given, the ship’s master, owner, agent, or the person in charge of the vehicle must put up enough money or give a bond set by the Secretary of the Treasury to pay the customs officers’ pay and expenses. Instead of paying each time, the owner or agent may give one bond, set by the Secretary, that covers special licenses for up to one year. If someone asks for overtime customs work at those times, the customs office will send enough officers if they are available, but the requester must first deposit money or give a bond to cover their pay. The pay rates and rules are the same as for other night, Sunday, or holiday loading or unloading. Owners or operators of highway vehicles, bridges, tunnels, or ferries between the United States and Canada or Mexico do not have to pay or give bonds for these services. At those border crossings, customs officers will be assigned as the Secretary of the Treasury decides, to work at any times during the twenty‑four hours each day, including Sundays and holidays. Those officers are paid under existing law as explained in United States v. Howard C. Myers (320 U.S. 561), and the United States pays them without charging owners or operators. A “ferry” means a passenger boat service that comes to the United States on a regular schedule at least once each hour when customs service is provided without charge.

Full Legal Text

Title 19, §1451

Customs Duties — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

Before any such 1 special license to unlade shall be granted, the master, owner, or agent of such 1 vessel or vehicle, or the person in charge of such 1 vehicle, shall be required to deposit sufficient money to pay, or to give a bond in an amount to be fixed by the Secretary conditioned to pay, the compensation and expenses of the customs officers and employees assigned to duty in connection with such 1 unlading at night or on Sunday or a holiday, in accordance with the provisions of section 267 of this title. In lieu of such deposit or bond the owner or agent of any vessel or vehicle or line of vessels or vehicles may execute a bond in an amount to be fixed by the Secretary of the Treasury to cover and include the issuance of special licenses for the unlading of such vessels or vehicles for a period not to exceed one year. Upon a request made by the owner, master, or person in charge of a vessel or vehicle, or by or on behalf of a common carrier or by or on behalf of the owner or consignee of any merchandise or baggage, for overtime services of customs officers or employees at night or on a Sunday or holiday, the appropriate customs officer shall assign sufficient customs officers or employees if available to perform any such services which may lawfully be performed by them during regular hours of business, but only if the person requesting such services deposits sufficient money to pay, or gives a bond in an amount to be fixed by the 22 So in original. The word “the” probably should not appear. such customs officer, conditioned to pay the compensation and expenses of such customs officers and employees, who shall be entitled to rates of compensation fixed on the same basis and payable in the same manner and upon the same terms and conditions as in the case of customs officers and employees assigned to duty in connection with lading or unlading at night or on Sunday or a holiday. Nothing in this section shall be construed to impair the existing authority of the Treasury Department to assign customs officers or employees to regular tours of duty at nights or on Sundays or holidays when such assignments are in the public interest: Provided, That the provisions of this section, section 1450 and 1452 of this title, and the provisions of section 267 of this title insofar as such section 267 of this title requires payment of compensation by the master, owner, agent, or consignee of a vessel or conveyance, shall not apply to the owner, operator, or agent of a highway vehicle, bridge, tunnel, or ferry, between the United States and Canada or between the United States and Mexico, nor to the lading or unlading of merchandise, baggage, or persons arriving in or departing from the United States by motor vehicle, trolley car, on foot, or by other means of highway travel upon, over, or through any highway, bridge, tunnel, or ferry. At ports of entry and customs stations where any merchandise, baggage, or persons shall arrive in or depart from the United States by motor vehicle, trolley car, on foot, or by other means of highway travel upon, over, or through any highway, bridge, tunnel, or ferry, between the United States and Canada or between the United States and Mexico, the appropriate customs officer, under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury may prescribe, shall assign customs officers and employees to duty at such times during the twenty-four hours of each day, including Sundays and holidays, as the Secretary of the Treasury in his discretion may determine to be necessary to facilitate the inspection and passage of such merchandise, baggage, or persons. Officers and employees assigned to such duty at night or on Sunday or a holiday shall be paid compensation in accordance with existing law as interpreted by the United States Supreme Court in the case of the United States v. Howard C. Myers (320 U.S. 561); but all compensation payable to such customs officers and employees shall be paid by the United States without requiring any license, bond, obligation, financial undertaking, or payment in connection therewith on the part of any owner, operator, or agent of any such highway vehicle, bridge, tunnel, or ferry, or other person. As used in this section, the term “ferry” shall mean a passenger service operated with the use of vessels which arrive in the United States on regular schedules at intervals of at least once each hour during any period in which customs service is to be furnished without reimbursement as above provided.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification As enacted by act June 17, 1930, the catchline for this section was “Same—extra compensation”. That catchline and the use of “such” in certain places in text indicates that this section should be read as a continuation of the provisions introduced in section 1450 of this title.

Prior Provisions

Provisions similar to those in this section, but applying also to the issuance of a permit for immediate lading or unlading after preliminary entry, were contained in act Feb. 13, 1911, ch. 46, § 3, 36 Stat. 900, which was superseded in part by act Sept. 21, 1922, ch. 356, title IV, § 451, 42 Stat. 954, and was repealed by section 643 thereof. section 451 of the 1922 act was superseded by section 451 of act June 17, 1930, comprising this section, and repealed by section 651(a)(1) of the 1930 act.

Amendments

1970—Pub. L. 91–271 substituted references to appropriate customs officer or such customs officer for references to collector wherever appearing. 1954—Act Sept. 1, 1954, permitted the deposit of sufficient money to cover costs of night, Sunday, or holiday service in lieu of filing of bond. 1944—Act
June 3, 1944, inserted proviso. 1938—Act
June 25, 1938, amended third sentence generally.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1970 AmendmentFor

Effective Date

of amendment by Pub. L. 91–271, see section 203 of Pub. L. 91–271, set out as a note under section 1500 of this title.

Effective Date

of 1938 AmendmentAmendment by act
June 25, 1938, effective on thirtieth day following
June 25, 1938, except as otherwise specifically provided, see section 37 of act
June 25, 1938, set out as a note under section 1401 of this title.

Executive Documents

Transfer of Functions

Functions of all officers of Department of the Treasury and functions of all agencies and employees of such Department transferred, with certain exceptions, to Secretary of the Treasury, with power vested in him to authorize their performance or performance of any of his functions, by any of those officers, agencies, and employees, by Reorg. Plan No. 26 of 1950, §§ 1, 2, eff. July 31, 1950, 15 F.R. 4935, 64 Stat. 1280, 1281, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

19 U.S.C. § 1451

Title 19 — Customs Duties

Last Updated

Apr 5, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60