Importing From Turkey to the USA: Entry Papers and Rules

Goods imported into the United States are entered with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The rules for the entry papers, the commercial invoice, the bond and the small-shipment limit are in Title 19 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Parts 113, 134, 141, 142 and 143 (eCFR, up to date as of 29.10.2026, checked 02.11.2026). None of the five parts names Türkiye.

The entry, and who may make it

In the regulations an entry is the documentation or data that §142.3 requires, filed with CBP to secure the release of imported merchandise from CBP custody, or the act of filing it (§141.0a). All merchandise imported into the United States is required to be entered, unless it is specifically excepted (§141.4).

When, and who

Time

Within 15 calendar days after landing from a vessel, aircraft or vehicle, or after arrival at the port of destination for goods moved in bond (§141.5, §142.2(a)).

Before arrival

The entry papers may be submitted before the goods arrive within the limits of the port where entry is to be made (§142.2(b)).

By carrier

The holder of a bill of lading or air waybill has the right to make entry (§141.11). Where no common carrier is used, possession of the goods on arrival is deemed sufficient (§141.12).

Nonresident

A nonresident consignee has the right to make entry; any bond has a resident corporate surety (§141.17). A nonresident corporation has a resident agent in the State of the port who accepts service of process, and a bond on CBP Form 301 with a resident corporate surety (§141.18).

CBP · 19 CFR §141.0a, §141.4, §141.5, §141.11, §141.12, §141.17, §141.18 and §142.2 · checked 02.11.2026 · eCFR Part 141 · eCFR Part 142

The entry papers, six items

To secure the release of the goods, the entry documentation consists of these papers (§142.3(a)):

1. The entryCBP Form 3461 (appropriately modified) or its electronic equivalent. CBP Form 7533 may be used in its place for merchandise imported from a contiguous country.
2. The right to make entryEvidence of the right to make entry, as §141.11 sets it out. For goods imported by common carrier that is a bill of lading or air waybill.
3. The commercial invoiceA commercial invoice. In the cases of §141.83(d), where no commercial invoice is required, a pro forma invoice or other acceptable documentation may be submitted in its place.
4. The packing listA packing list, where appropriate.
5. Other papersOther documents which may be required by CBP or other Federal, State or local agencies for a particular shipment.
6. The namesWhere the goods were sold or consigned to a person in the United States: that person’s name, street address and identification number on CBP Form 3461, 3461 ALT or 7501. With no known buyer: the premises in the United States where the goods are delivered.

CBP · 19 CFR §142.3(a) · checked 02.11.2026 · eCFR Part 142

The papers may be submitted on paper or, where appropriate, electronically (§142.3(d)). When the entry summary is filed at the time of entry, CBP Form 3461 or 7533 is not required, and CBP Form 7501 or CBP Form 3311 may serve as both entry and entry summary if the documents of §142.3(a)(2) to (5) and §142.16(b) are filed (§142.3(b)).

The commercial invoice, one for each shipment

A commercial invoice is presented for each shipment, at the time the entry summary is filed (§141.81). It is prepared in the manner customary in the trade and carries the information that §§141.86 to 141.89 set out (§141.83(c)).

Language

In English, or with an accurate English translation attached that has adequate information for examination of the goods and determination of duties (§141.86(d)).

Parties

When, where, by whom and to whom the goods are sold or agreed to be sold. If they are not imported in pursuance of a purchase: the place shipped from, the time, and the persons shipping and receiving (§141.86(a)(2)).

Goods

A detailed description: the name by which each item is known, the grade or quality, the marks, numbers and symbols, and the marks and numbers of the packages. The quantities, in the weights and measures of the country of shipment or of the United States (§141.86(a)(3), (a)(4)).

Price

The purchase price of each item in the currency of the purchase, and the kind of currency (§141.86(a)(5), (a)(7)).

Charges

All charges itemized by name and amount, including freight, insurance, commission, cases, containers, coverings and cost of packing (§141.86(a)(8)).

Origin

The country of origin of the goods (§141.86(a)(10)).

Packages

What merchandise is contained in each individual package, in adequate detail (§141.86(e)).

Employee

The name of a responsible employee of the exporter, who has knowledge, or can readily obtain knowledge, of the transaction (§141.86(j)).

CBP · 19 CFR §141.81, §141.83 and §141.86 · checked 02.11.2026 · eCFR Part 141

With the entry, and for particular goods:

With the entry

An adequate description, the quantities, the values or approximate values, the eight-digit HTS subheading and the name and complete address of the foreign firm responsible for invoicing (§142.6(a)). If the importer is uncertain of the subheading, CBP assists at the importer’s request; the port director may waive the requirement if the information is not available when release is authorized (§142.6(a)(4)).

Copies

CBP may accept a copy in place of the original. A copy other than a photostatic or photographic copy carries a declaration by the foreign seller, the shipper or the importer that it is a true copy (§141.83(c)(2)).

Clothing

Invoices for textile wearing apparel indicate a fibre breakdown in percentages by weight for the whole garment, for the outer shell and for the lining. A garment of more than one material has a breakdown for each separate textile material and each nontextile material. For woven garments the invoice indicates whether the fabric is yarn dyed (§141.89).

CBP · 19 CFR §141.83, §141.89 and §142.6 · checked 02.11.2026 · eCFR Part 141 · eCFR Part 142

The bond, CBP Form 301

At entry, merchandise is not released from CBP custody unless a single entry or continuous bond on CBP Form 301, with the bond conditions of §113.62, has been filed. An approved corporate surety executes it, or cash deposits or obligations of the United States secure it. Section 142.4(a) makes exceptions for §10.101(d) and for the waiver in §142.4(c).

1. The minimumThe amount of any CBP bond is not less than $100, except when the law or regulation expressly allows a lesser amount (§113.13(a)).
2. The amountIn deciding whether an amount is sufficient, CBP considers the principal’s record in paying duties, taxes and charges on time, its record in complying with demands for redelivery and other requirements, and its record in honoring bond commitments. It also considers the value and nature of the merchandise, the supervision CBP will exercise and any information in the bond application (§113.13(b)).
3. The waiverThe port director may waive the surety or cash deposit when the value the bond secures does not exceed $2,500, the entry summary papers are filed and estimated duties are deposited before release, and the importer has not been delinquent or otherwise remiss in any transaction with CBP. The waiver does not apply to quota merchandise, to merchandise that in the port director’s opinion cannot easily be appraised or classified, or to merchandise where, in the port director’s opinion based on past experience, there may be a question of redelivery (§142.4(c)).
4. A change of partyIf the entry is made in the name of an agent, or of a principal, and the entry summary is then filed in the name of the other party, the party named in the entry summary files a bond on CBP Form 301 (§142.4(b)(2)).
5. A nonresidentA nonresident consignee’s bond has a resident corporate surety (§141.17). A nonresident corporation files a bond on CBP Form 301 with a resident corporate surety (§141.18(b)).
6. The reviewCBP periodically reviews each bond on file to see whether it is adequate to protect the revenue and ensure compliance. If CBP finds a bond inadequate, it notifies the principal and the surety in writing, and the principal has 15 days from the notification to remedy the deficiency. The section also lets CBP give written notice that additional security, a cash deposit or a single transaction bond, may be required until the deficiency is remedied (§113.13(c)).

CBP · 19 CFR §113.13, §141.17, §141.18 and §142.4 · checked 02.11.2026 · eCFR Part 113 · eCFR Part 141 · eCFR Part 142

A Customs bond delivered with an entry is, in the words of §141.1(b)(1), «solely to protect the revenue of the United States». It does not relieve the importer of liabilities incurred from the importation.

The entry summary, and the duties

The form, and who pays

The form

The entry summary is on CBP Form 7501 or its electronic equivalent, unless another form or format is prescribed. It is used for merchandise formally entered for consumption or for warehouse (§142.11(a)).

When duties accrue

On arrival of the importing vessel within a Customs port with the intent to unlade, or on arrival within the Customs territory if the goods come otherwise than by vessel (§141.1(a)).

Who owes them

A personal debt due from the importer to the United States, discharged only by payment in full of all duties legally accruing, unless relieved by law or regulation (§141.1(b)(1)).

How they are paid

Directly to CBP, whether or not a licensed customhouse broker is used, or through a licensed customhouse broker. Payment to a broker does not relieve the importer of liability if the broker does not pay the duties (§141.1(b)(1), (b)(3)).

CBP · 19 CFR §141.1 and §142.11 · checked 02.11.2026 · eCFR Part 141 · eCFR Part 142

Small shipments, informal entry

Merchandise not exceeding $2,500 in value may be entered under informal entry. The exception is an article valued over $250 that is classified in Chapter 99, Subchapters III and IV of the HTSUS (§143.21(a)).

1. The limit$2,500 for a shipment, for any installment of a shipment that arrives at different times, and for a portion of one consignment that may be entered separately (§143.21(a) to (c)). Other kinds of merchandise are also eligible, among them personal effects, tools of trade and commercial travelers’ samples (§143.21(d) to (i)).
2. Formal entry may be requiredCBP may require a formal consumption or appraisement entry for any merchandise «if deemed necessary for import admissibility enforcement purposes; revenue protection; or the efficient conduct of customs business». Individual shipments for the same consignee valued at $2,500 or less may be consolidated on one such entry (§143.22).
3. The formCBP Form 368 or 368A (serially numbered) or CBP Form 7501, or its electronic equivalent. If the Center director authorizes it, a commercial invoice carrying a declaration signed by the importer or the importer’s agent may serve. Exceptions for other forms are in §143.23(a) to (d).
4. The detailsThe form contains an adequate description of the merchandise and the HTSUS item number under which it is classified (§143.25).
5. The invoiceFor merchandise imported pursuant to a purchase or agreement to purchase, or intended for sale, the importer produces the commercial invoice or, in its absence, an itemized statement of value (§143.27).
6. The depositUnless statement processing and ACH are used, the estimated duties and taxes, if any, are deposited when a Customs officer accepts the entry. If the examination finds further duties or taxes due, they are deposited before release (§143.28).

CBP · 19 CFR §143.21 to §143.28 · checked 02.11.2026 · eCFR Part 143

Marking the country of origin, and Part 134

Part 134 sets the marking rule for every country of origin. It does not name Türkiye.

The rule

Unless excepted by law, section 304 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1304) requires every article of foreign origin, or its container, imported into the United States to be marked in a conspicuous place as legibly, indelibly and permanently as the nature of the article or container will permit. The marking is to indicate to an ultimate purchaser in the United States the English name of the country of origin (§134.11).

The name

The marking includes the full English name of the country of origin, unless another marking to indicate the English name is specifically authorized by the Commissioner of Customs (§134.45(a)(1)). Abbreviations that unmistakably indicate the name of a country, and variant spellings that clearly indicate the English name, are acceptable (§134.45(b)).

The marking

It is to survive normal distribution and store handling. The ultimate purchaser in the United States is to be able to find it easily and read it without strain (§134.41(b)).

Exceptions

The general exceptions include articles incapable of being marked, crude substances, articles imported for the importer’s own use and not intended for sale, and articles produced more than 20 years before importation (§134.32(a), (e), (f), (i)).

Not marked

An imported article, or its container, held in CBP custody for inspection, examination or appraisement is not delivered until it is marked with its country of origin, or until the marking duties of 19 U.S.C. 1304(f), or security for them, are deposited (§134.3(a)). For an article already released and found not legally marked, a demand for redelivery is made not later than 30 days after the date of entry for goods examined in public stores and places of arrival, or after the date of examination for goods examined elsewhere (§134.3(b)).

CBP · 19 CFR §134.3, §134.11, §134.32, §134.41 and §134.45 · checked 02.11.2026 · eCFR Part 134

Words on the papers

ithalat

import

ihracat

export

gümrük

customs

gümrük beyannamesi

customs declaration

fatura

invoice

çeki listesi

packing list

koli

package, carton

konşimento

bill of lading

hava konşimentosu

air waybill

teminat

bond, security

menşe

origin

ithalatçı

importer

ihracatçı

exporter

alt pozisyon

subheading of the tariff

Quick answers in plain words

Sources and limits

Rules and pages: Title 19 CFR, eCFR text up to date as of 29.10.2026, checked 02.11.2026.