Guides
Import compliance guides
Plain-language explanations of the CBP and CPSC situations importers run into — what a hold or a form means, which certificate a product needs, and where each one points next.
Prefer to watch? Guides marked have a short video version on the page — or see them all in one YouTube playlist.
Held shipments and customs notices
What a hold, a status message, or a CBP form means, and who normally answers it.
- Why is my shipment held at U.S. customs?Why a shipment gets held at U.S. customs: CBP exams, CPSC partner-agency holds, and forced-labor detentions — how long each lasts and who handles it.
- CBP “Under Review” vs “Hold Intact” — what the status meansCBP “Under Review” and “Hold Intact” are partner-agency cargo statuses, not a release. What each one means, why they differ, and what to check next.
- Customs is holding my shipment for a CPSC certificate video · 34sWhen CPSC holds your shipment for a certificate: why regulated products get held, how the July 8 2026 eFiling rule fits, and the free product check.
- What is a CBP Form 4647 (Notice to Mark or Redeliver)?A CBP Form 4647 is a Notice to Mark and/or Redeliver for a country-of-origin marking problem — what it means, the 90-day deadline, and who answers it.
CPSC certificates and eFiling
Which certificate a consumer product needs, and how the eFiling requirement fits.
- What is the CPSC eFiling requirement? video · 34sCPSC eFiling: the electronic certificate requirement for imported consumer products, who files, the July 8 2026 date, and what it does not change.
- CPC vs GCC — which certificate does my product need? video · 38sCPC vs GCC: children's products need a Children's Product Certificate with third-party testing; general-use products need a GCC. How to tell which applies.
- CPSC disclaim vs certificate: how to tell which one appliesCPSC disclaim vs certificate: a certificate says a regulated product complies; a disclaim says certificate data is not required. How to tell which applies.
- What is a Children's Product Certificate (CPC)? video · 34sA Children's Product Certificate (CPC) certifies a children's product meets the CPSC safety rules that apply, based on accepted lab testing.
- Does CPSC issue certificates? Who actually issues a CPC video · 34sCPSC does not issue or approve certificates. The importer or U.S. manufacturer writes the CPC on an accepted lab's test report. Who signs, what CPSC does.
- What is a GCC certificate? (General Certificate of Conformity) video · 34sA GCC certificate (General Certificate of Conformity) certifies a general-use product meets CPSC rules, based on testing or a reasonable testing program.
- What is Reese's Law (button cell battery rules)?Reese's Law led CPSC to set 16 CFR part 1263 for button and coin batteries: child-resistant compartments, use-and-abuse testing, and the dates it applies.
Forced labor and the UFLPA
The forced-labor rules that can bar goods from entry, and how to check a supplier first.
- My shipment was detained under the UFLPA — what now? video · 1:09A UFLPA detention means CBP presumes your goods are made with forced labor. The paths CBP offers, the 30-day clock, the documents involved, and where to get help.
- What is the UFLPA Entity List? (186 entities as of August 2026) video · 32sThe UFLPA Entity List: 186 entities as of August 3, 2026, counted across DHS's sections with duplicates removed. What it is, and how to check a supplier.
- CBP detained my shipment under the UFLPA — what it meansA UFLPA detention means CBP presumes your goods are made with forced labor and barred from entry. What the presumption means, and how to screen before it.
- What is a Withhold Release Order (WRO)?A Withhold Release Order (WRO) lets CBP detain goods believed to be made with forced labor. How a WRO works, and how it differs from the UFLPA Entity List.
More guides
- CBP Form 28 vs Form 29 (CF-28 vs CF-29): what's the difference between the two customs notices?CBP Form 28 vs Form 29 (CF-28 vs CF-29): a Request for Information asks for documents; a Notice of Action changes an entry's classification, value or duty.
- What is the UFLPA (Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act)?The UFLPA presumes goods tied to Xinjiang or a listed entity are made with forced labor and barred from U.S. entry unless the importer rebuts it.
- Xinjiang and forced labor: what is the U.S. import risk?Goods made wholly or in part in China's Xinjiang region are presumed made with forced labor and barred from U.S. entry. What that means for sourcing.
- CPSC vs FCC: which certificate does my product need? video · 32sCPSC vs FCC: the CPSC covers consumer product safety, the FCC covers devices that emit RF. How to tell if a product needs one, both, or neither.
- How do I respond to a CBP detention notice?How to respond to a CBP detention notice: tell a formal detention from a carrier delay, read a CF-28, CF-29, or UFLPA hold, and meet the deadline.
- What documents does my customs broker need? video · 52sThe documents a customs broker needs to file your entry — commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading, and any certificate the shipment requires.
- Does imported food need FDA facility registration?FDA food facility registration for imports: which foreign facilities must register under 21 CFR Part 1 Subpart H, the exemptions, and what it leaves out.
- What is FDA prior notice for imported food?FDA prior notice for imported food: what it is, how far ahead it must reach FDA, how it is filed through ABI/ACE or PNSI, and which food is exempt.
- What is FSVP (the Foreign Supplier Verification Program)?The Foreign Supplier Verification Program (FSVP) under 21 CFR Part 1 Subpart L: what it is, that it sits with the U.S. food importer, and who is exempt.
- Does an imported medical device or drug need FDA registration?FDA registration and listing for imported drugs (Part 207) and medical devices (Part 807): who registers, the initial importer, and what it does not mean.
- Why did Amazon reject my CPC certificate? video · 58sWhy a Children's Product Certificate (CPC) gets rejected even when a seller has one: the exact-product match, the accepted lab, and the age-grading trap.
- What goes in a UFLPA detention response package?What goes in a UFLPA detention response package: the pathways, the evidence CBP looks for, and how the package is assembled for a customs attorney.
- My supplier isn't on the UFLPA Entity List — why were my goods detained? video · 1:02A supplier absent from the UFLPA Entity List does not clear the goods: the forced-labor presumption reaches upstream inputs, and a WRO needs no name.
- Does moving production out of China avoid UFLPA?Moving production out of China does not clear UFLPA on its own: the forced-labor presumption follows where the cotton was grown, not the sewing country.
- CPSC-accepted lab vs. any accredited lab — what's the difference?A Children's Product Certificate must rest on a CPSC-accepted lab, not merely an accredited one — what CPSC acceptance means and how to check a lab.
- Does my product need a CPSC tracking label?A CPSC tracking label is the permanent mark a children's product needs on the item and its packaging — the maker, date and batch, and who is responsible.
- Why is CBP voiding importer of record numbers? (Form 5106 accuracy, from September 18, 2026)From September 18, 2026 CBP voids importer of record (IOR) numbers whose Form 5106 details are inaccurate. What the notice requires, and who files the fix.
- How do I screen a supplier for forced labor?How to screen a supplier for forced labor: the UFLPA Entity List, CBP withhold release orders and the sanctions lists in order, and what each check proves.
- How to read a third-party test report for a CPCWhat a third-party test report contains, block by block, and what to check before a Children's Product Certificate or a marketplace listing rests on it.
- What a pre-shipment inspection report shows, and when to book oneWhat a pre-shipment inspection report contains — AQL sampling, defect classes, quantities, checklists — and why it must come before the balance is paid.
- Factory audit vs. supplier screening — what each one provesA factory audit scores one site on one day; a screening checks legal list status. What each proves, what neither does, and where UFLPA due diligence sits.
- Walmart asked for my CPC or GCC — what does the request mean?What Walmart Marketplace asks for when it requests a Children's Product Certificate or GCC, who sends the request, and why a certificate is rejected.
- TikTok Shop asked for compliance documents — which certificate does my product need?TikTok Shop requires compliance documents to sell in many regulated categories. Which certificate a product needs, where they go, and what eFiling is not.
- Does a handmade children's product on Etsy need a CPC?Etsy bans some children's items and makes sellers prove compliance. A handmade children's product still needs a CPC; small-batch only changes testing.