Securing Accountability in Foreign Entries Act

Key Points

• Any company or individual importing goods into the U.S. must have a real physical office here — not a virtual address, mailbox, or shared office space. This ensures someone in the U.S. can be held legally responsible for imported goods.
• Foreign companies without a U.S. presence must either set up a U.S. subsidiary with at least one full-time American employee or permanent resident, or partner with a large established U.S. affiliate that has 1,500+ employees and $1 million in assets.
• All import duties, taxes, and fees must be paid electronically from a U.S. bank account that has been verified under anti-money laundering rules. CBP can no longer accept payments from foreign banks or unverified accounts.
• The minimum continuous import bond jumps to $100,000, up from much lower amounts currently allowed. This guarantees money is available to cover unpaid duties if an importer defaults or disappears.
• Special exceptions exist for companies from countries with equivalent import rules (like Canada and Australia) and for massive express carriers employing at least 300,000 people in the U.S., who can designate their own licensed customs brokers as importers of record.