Cura Resource Group
Our customs compliance services make sure every import entry tells U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) the truth: what the goods are, what you paid, where they came from and how much duty you owe.
Working with our licensed customs brokers, Cura Resource Group classifies your products, checks the declared value, pays the duty and files the entry. If something turns out wrong later, we fix it.
You stay the importer, or we act as the importer of record when you have no US entity. Either way, one team handles the paperwork and the freight.
It means each entry you file tells CBP the truth about the goods, and you can prove it later. Federal law puts that job on the importer of record, who must file “using reasonable care” (19 U.S.C. § 1484).
Reasonable care covers the three key areas of customs compliance: the tariff code, the value and the country of origin, plus the paperwork behind each one. A broker can file for you, but the legal duty stays with the importer.
Our customs compliance solutions split the work into three stages, because the mistakes happen at different moments.
We classify each product under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, since the code sets the duty rate. You can try a code yourself with our free HS code lookup tool, then let us confirm it.
We also check each product’s country of origin and how you must mark the goods with it. Origin decides the duty rate, and it decides whether a trade agreement applies at all.
We check the declared value against the invoice and the terms of sale. We also screen your customers and suppliers before you trade with them, so a restricted party never ends up on one of your entries.
Our brokers file the entry and we pay the duty, then bill it back to you. If CBP holds a shipment or calls it for an exam, we deal with the officers and arrange what they ask for. Our customs compliance software handles the paperwork for each entry.
Freight landing at the Ports of Los Angeles or Long Beach can go straight to our Riverside warehouse once CBP releases it. The site sits about 60 miles inland.
Mistakes surface weeks later, often when a supplier sends a corrected invoice. We correct entries after filing, so the record matches what really happened.
We also review entries you filed in the past and flag any worth correcting or disclosing. Most importers have never had anyone look back.
Your entry records stay with us for five years. CBP requires every record tied to an entry to last that long, counted from the date of entry (19 CFR § 163.4).
Start with the trade agreements. Goods that qualify under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) or another free trade agreement can enter at a lower rate, often zero. We check if your products qualify and keep the paperwork that proves it.
Classification and value come next. Two codes can sometimes describe the same item at different rates. We advise on the code and value that will hold up in an audit, rather than the cheapest one on paper.
If you export goods you imported, or products made from them, you can claim most of the duty back. The law calls this duty drawback, and the refund can reach 99 percent of the duties, taxes and fees you paid (19 U.S.C. § 1313).
You have five years from the import date to file, and we prepare the claim with you.
A careless entry can cost up to twice the duty you underpaid.
Under 19 U.S.C. § 1592, the cap for negligence is the lesser of the goods’ domestic value or two times the lost duties, taxes and fees. If the error did not change the duty, the cap becomes 20 percent of the dutiable value.
Gross negligence doubles those caps to four times the duty, or 40 percent. Fraud can cost the full domestic value of the goods.
If you report the error to CBP before a formal investigation starts, the law calls that a prior disclosure. For a negligent error, the penalty then drops to the interest on the unpaid duty, provided you pay what you owe (19 U.S.C. § 1592(c)(4)).
Most importers need both, and they do different jobs. A licensed customs broker transmits entries to CBP. A compliance partner makes sure the facts in those entries are right before they go, and fixes them after.
Cura Resource Group is not a customs broker. We work with licensed brokers and run the compliance work around their filings, so you deal with one contact instead of three.
Customs compliance stops at the border: the entry, the duty and the clearance. Trade compliance adds export controls and licenses on top. If you also export or ship controlled goods, our trade compliance services cover that wider ground.
Start with a free customs compliance review, the consulting step before we take on your entries. Send us your product list and three or four recent entry summaries. We will tell you which codes and values we would change, and what that means for the duty you pay.
No. We work with licensed customs brokers, who transmit the entries to CBP. We handle the compliance work around those filings: classification, value checks, duty payment, holds, corrections and records. You get one point of contact for all of it.
A specialist checks that each import entry carries the right tariff code, value and country of origin. They also screen trading partners and deal with CBP holds and exams. After filing, they correct entries and keep the records CBP can ask to see for five years.
Five years from the date of entry. Federal rules require every record tied to an entry to last that long (19 CFR § 163.4). An audit can reach back across that whole period, so the records have to be easy to find.
Correct it before CBP finds it. If you disclose it before a formal investigation starts, a negligence penalty drops to the interest on the unpaid duty. You still pay the duty owed, and we prepare the correction with you.
Yes, through duty drawback. Export imported goods or products made from them, and you can reclaim up to 99 percent of the duties, taxes and fees (19 U.S.C. § 1313). The claim has to go in within five years of the import date, and we prepare it with you.
It depends on how many entries you file and how many products you import. We quote after we see your product list and recent entries, so the price matches the work your imports need.
Related Compliance Services:
Compliance & Risk Management |
Retail Compliance |
Quality Assurance |
Trade Compliance |
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