Customs Clearance Backed by a Global Network of Experts

Brink's Customs Clearance moves your international shipments accurately and on time. Brink's customs experts handle direct consumption entries, temporary imports, Carnets, duty drawbacks, and CITES wildlife shipments with the same security discipline Brink's applies to the world's most valuable cargo.

Expert entries. Fewer inspections. Trusted at borders for over 165 years.

100+ countries

16,100 vehicles

1,300 facilities

165+ years of experience

How customs clearance works with Brink's

Three steps between your dock and a cleared shipment.

  1. Prepare. Brink's reviews your commodity, destination, and entry type, then builds the document package before the shipment moves. Classification, valuation, and permits get settled up front, before a mistake can hold up the shipment.

  2. Clear. Brink's files the entry, coordinates with customs and partner government agencies, and settles duties and taxes through a streamlined process. As a C-TPAT member, Brink's shipments face fewer inspections.

  3. Deliver. Once customs releases the cargo, Brink's moves it onward under secure chain of custody or holds it in a bonded warehouse until you need it.

What happens when your shipment reaches the border

Customs clearance follows the same sequence in most countries. Knowing the stages tells you where delays start and where a broker earns their keep:

The carrier reports the shipment to customs before or upon arrival. The manifest has to match what's actually in the crate.
The broker files the customs entry declaring what the goods are, what they're worth, and where they came from. In the U.S., this means the entry paperwork and a classification under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule.
Customs reviews the entry and decides whether to release the shipment, ask questions, or pull it for physical exam. High-value cargo draws more scrutiny than general freight.
Customs assesses duties, taxes, and fees based on the classification and declared value. The importer or their broker settles the amount.
Customs releases the shipment for delivery, or for transfer into a bonded facility if duties are being deferred.
Corrections, protests, and duty drawback claims happen after release. Good entry records make claims routine instead of painful.

A customs delay costs more when the cargo is worth more

For general freight, a shipment stuck at the border is an inconvenience. For a case of loose diamonds, a pallet of banknotes, or a temperature-sensitive biologic, it's serious exposure. Every extra hour in a customs warehouse is time your asset sits outside your control. Insurance terms get tested, and downstream commitments slip.

Most delays trace back to a short list of preventable causes. Brink’s helps you avoid them with:

  • Complete and consistent invoices. Values, currencies, or descriptions that match across documents.
  • Correct classification. The wrong tariff code can change the duty owed and invite review.
  • Valuation accuracy. Prevents a hold on high-value goods due to thin documentation.
  • Proper permitting. CITES certificates, licenses, and partner agency approvals are secured before arrival.
  • Settled duties. Payments clear when brokers have a settlement process in place.
     

The documents your shipment needs to clear

Every clean entry starts with a complete document package. Depending on your commodity and entry type, Brink's prepares and verifies:

Description, value, currency, parties, and the Incoterms rule that defines who carries risk and cost at each leg.
Contents by package, matched to the invoice and the manifest.
Air waybill or bill of lading covering the movement.
The declaration filed with the border agency, including tariff classification and country of origin.
The financial guarantee most import entries require.
For temporary imports such as exhibition goods, the passport-for-goods that replaces duties and deposits.
For wildlife-derived products, the certificates required under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.
Anything your commodity requires from partner government agencies, from precious metals to pharmaceuticals.
The authorization that lets Brink's act on your behalf as importer of record support.

What Brink's Customs Clearance covers

Direct consumption entries

Brink's files the entry, classifies the goods under the correct tariff heading, and settles duties and taxes so the shipment clears without a stall. Accurate classification up front protects you twice. You avoid overpaying duty, and you avoid the review that an implausible entry invites.

Temporary imports and Carnets

Some goods enter a country only for a while — for exhibitions, trade shows, or repair — and then leave again, so they shouldn't pay duty as if they were staying. Brink's works with government agencies on temporary entries, including Carnet clearance into the U.S., so your pieces make the show and make it home.

Duty drawbacks

If you import goods and then later export them, you may be owed a refund of the duties you paid. Brink's manages the drawback claim and the record-keeping behind it, so money you're entitled to actually comes back. For businesses that regularly move goods through a market rather than into it, drawback recovery turns a routine customs cost into working capital.

CITES wildlife shipments

Shipments of products derived from protected species move under strict permit requirements. Brink's handles CITES fish and wildlife entries with the certificates and agency coordination they demand.

Bonded warehouses

A bonded warehouse lets you store goods under customs control in high-security Brink's facilities in the world's busiest free trade zones. Duties wait until the goods enter the market, and your inventory sits behind Brink's security while it does. Shippers use bonded storage to stage goods for reexport without paying duty twice, to time a market entry, or to hold high-value stock close to buyers without committing to an entry.

Risk consulting

Brink's experts help you solve security and logistics challenges that go beyond a single entry, and they optimize your compliance and risk management as a whole.

Compliance that speeds you up

Brink's is a member of the U.S. Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT), the CBP program that certifies supply chain security. Membership changes how your shipments are treated at the border:

  • Fewer inspections, because certified members are assessed as lower risk.
  • A streamlined duty and tax settlement process.
  • Faster movement through the queue when exams happen.
  • A security standard that carries weight with customs authorities beyond the U.S.

Brink's also screens shipments against sanctions and export control requirements, including programs administered under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). That way, a compliance problem is caught in your paperwork rather than at the border.

TALK TO A SPECIALIST

Built for shipments a standard broker isn't set up for

General freight brokers clear general freight. Brink's clears the commodities that draw the most scrutiny and carry the most risk:

High-value, high-theft-risk goods that need secure custody through the clearance process, not just paperwork.
Bullion and refined metals with strict valuation, licensing, and chain-of-custody requirements at the border.
Cross-border currency movements with the regulatory reporting and security handling they require.
Temperature-sensitive and controlled products where a customs hold threatens the cargo itself. Pairs with Brink's CEIV Pharma-certified transport.
Temporary imports, Carnets, and condition-sensitive handling for pieces moving between shows, fairs, and collections.

Where this fits in Brink's Global Services

Customs clearance is one leg of the journey. Brink's Global Services covers the rest of it.

Secure Logistics

High-value cargo transport with armored vehicles, vetted personnel, and a verified chain of custody on either side of the border.

CEIV Pharma-Certified Transport

IATA CEIV Pharma-certified, temperature-controlled transport for pharmaceuticals and life science products by air, sea, and road.

Private Client Storage

Segregated vault storage for precious metals and high-value assets at Brink's facilities around the world.

Frequently Asked Questions

A customs broker prepares and files the entry that declares your goods to the border agency, classifies them under the tariff schedule, arranges duty and tax payment, and coordinates with customs and partner agencies until the shipment is released.
A Carnet is an international customs document that lets goods enter a country temporarily without paying duties or posting deposits, provided they leave again. It's the standard tool for exhibition pieces, trade show goods, and professional equipment.
A drawback is a refund of duties paid on imported goods that are later exported. Claims depend on clean import and export records, which is why Brink's manages the documentation from entry onward.
Customs assesses C-TPAT members as lower risk, which means fewer inspections and faster processing when exams occur, and a streamlined duty and tax settlement process for shipments that Brink's clears.
A bonded warehouse is a secure facility where imported goods can be stored under customs control without paying duties until they're withdrawn for the market. Brink's operates high-security bonded warehousing in major free trade zones.
Incoterms are the standardized trade terms on your commercial invoice that define where the seller's responsibility ends and the buyer's begins: who arranges transport, who carries the risk, and who handles clearance and duties. The wrong term leaves you responsible for a leg you didn't plan for. Brink's confirms the terms on the invoice match how the shipment actually moves.
Yes. Brink's clears shipments through its global network of customs experts, coordinating entries, permits, and local requirements in the markets where your cargo lands, so you work with one partner instead of a broker per border.
Yes. Brink's handles CITES fish and wildlife shipments, including the permits and agency coordination that products derived from protected species require.

Clear your next shipment without the wait

Talk to a Brink's customs specialist about your commodity, your lanes, and your entry types. We'll map the clearance plan before your cargo moves.

Or call 804-289-9600 to contact a Brink's specialist today.

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