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Title 19, Customs DutiesRelease 119-110

§1496a Clearance Restrictions of Individuals Returning From Abroad; Special Circumstances; “baggage and Effects” Defined

Title 19 › CHAPTER 4 — TARIFF ACT OF 1930 › SUBTITLE III — ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS › Part III — Ascertainment, Collection, and Recovery of Duties › § 1496a

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

Unless another law says otherwise, people returning to the United States from abroad are not allowed to bring in their baggage duty-free without entry, and they are not automatically given faster customs inspection and clearance. Faster processing can be allowed in special cases like serious illness, urgent news of a disaster, or when escorting a deceased relative. “Baggage and effects” means items the person had while abroad, brought in when they arrive, and meant for their personal or household use. It does not include things brought for other people, for sale, or for business use.

Full Legal Text

Title 19, §1496a

Customs Duties, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

Except as otherwise provided by law, no individual returning to the United States from abroad shall be—
(1)entitled to the admission of his or her baggage and effects free of duty without entry; or
(2)entitled to expedited customs examination and clearance of his or her baggage and effects.
Paragraph (2) shall not apply to individuals in special circumstances (including being seriously ill or infirm, having been summoned by news of affliction or disaster, and accompanying the body of a deceased relative). For purposes of this section, the term “baggage and effects” means any article which was in the possession of the individual while abroad and is being imported in connection with his or her arrival and is intended for his or her bona fide personal or household use. Such term does not include any article imported as an accommodation to others or for sale or other commercial use.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification Section was enacted as part of Customs Procedural Reform and Simplification Act of 1978, and not as part of Tariff Act of 1930 which comprises this chapter.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Clearance Procedures Study; Report to Congressional Committees Pub. L. 95–410, title II, § 216, Oct. 3, 1978, 92 Stat. 904, provided that the Comptroller General, in cooperation with the Customs Service of the Department of the Treasury and the Immigration and Naturalization Service of the Department of Justice, study clearance procedures for individuals entering or reentering the United States, and to report the results of his study and any recommendations for expediting the clearance process to specific committees of the United States Senate and the House of Representatives not later than Sept. 1, 1979.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

19 U.S.C. § 1496a

Title 19, Customs Duties

Last Updated

Sep 22, 2026

Release point: 119-110