United States Customs Service

Summary of United States Customs Service

An agency within the U.S. Department of the Treasury charged with the enforcement of the tariff acts and other laws relating to the importation of goods.

The Customs Service was established by Congress in 1789. Among its duties are assessment and collection of duties, excises, and penalties on imported merchandise; seizure of contraband entering the United States; protection of domestic economic in-terests by enforcing the antidumping and counter-vailing duty laws, trademark and patent safeguards, and quota restrictions; monitoring and examining exports from the United States to ensure compliance with U.S. export control regulations; capturing statistical data on U.S. international trade; and administration of U.S. health, safety, and marking laws on behalf of various governmental agencies.

The Customs Service is headed by a commissioner of customs. For administrative reasons, the service is divided into nine regions, each headed by a regional director. Regions (excepting Region II) are further subdivided into districts, each headed by a district director; Region II, covering the port of New York, does not have districts but is divided into three areas. Each district encompasses various ports of entry through which foreign merchandise may enter the United States and undergo customs inspection. In all, there are more than three hundred ports of entry functioning in the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands

(Main Author: William J. Miller)