April 2026 Customs Broker Exam

The April 2026 customs broker license exam was administered on Wednesday, April 22, 2026. 80 multiple-choice questions in 4.5 hours, with 60 correct needed to pass. CBP reported a 22% pass rate prior to appeal decisions. 71 questions from this sitting are in the simulator, each with the official citation from CBP's answer key and a plain-English explanation.

What this sitting was like

Twenty-two percent is the middle of a strange run. The October 2025 exam passed 12 percent of candidates and the April 2025 exam passed 30 percent. Three consecutive sittings, and your odds nearly tripled depending on which one you happened to sit for. There is no good way to predict which kind you are walking into, and that is the actual argument against studying to a target score: prepare for the October 2025 version of this exam, and if you draw an April 2025, you will know it within the first twenty minutes.

This was also the first sitting under the new appeals threshold. Candidates who scored within three questions of passing, 57 or higher out of 80, could appeal up to four questions. The 22 percent figure is the pre-appeal number, so the final rate for this exam is higher than what CBP published.

Citations on this sitting clustered in 19 CFR Part 111, Part 141 and Part 152, per CBP's own answer key.

Five questions from this exam

Q1. A broker fails to file the triennial status report by March 1 of the reporting year which results in the suspension of their license by operation of law. In addition to filing the triennial status report, what must the broker do to reinstate their license?

  1. APay a fine of $500 within 90 calendar days from the date the original report was due.
  2. BFile a protest with CBP within 180 days showing just cause as to why their license should be reinstated.
  3. CFile an appeal with CBP within three months of the date of the notice of suspension.
  4. DPay the required fee within 60 calendar days of the date of the notice of suspension.
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: D  · Authority: 19 CFR 111.30(d)(4)

The correct answer is D because 19 CFR 111.30(d)(4) mandates that a suspended broker must pay the required reinstatement fee within 60 calendar days of the suspension notice to restore their license. This requirement is distinct from penalties or appeals, which are not mentioned in the cited authority. Options A, B, and C are incorrect because they reference fines, protests, or appeals, which are not specified in the regulation governing license reinstatement after suspension due to failure to file the triennial report.

Q4. Torres & Sons, a partnership, executed a power of attorney (POA) with Kent Customs Brokers (KCB) on May 1, 2024. Torres and Sons ended its business relationship with KCB on April 20, 2026, and wishes to also end KCB's POA. Any of the following measures would terminate the POA between Torres and Sons and KCB EXCEPT:

  1. AProviding a written notice of the POA's revocation to CBP electronically and receiving confirmation of the notice's receipt.
  2. BWaiting until the POA expires on May 1, 2026.
  3. CExecuting a new POA with a different customs broker.
  4. DForming a new firm by adding an additional member to the partnership.
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: C  · Authority: 19 CFR 141.39, 19 CFR 141.34, 19 CFR 141.35

The correct answer is C because executing a new POA with a different customs broker does not terminate the existing POA; it merely creates a new one. Under 19 CFR 141.39(b), a change in partnership membership (as in D) invalidates the prior POA, revocation (A) and expiration (B) are explicit termination methods. Option C does not affect the original POA’s validity. Options A and B are valid termination methods per 19 CFR 141.39 and 141.35, which allow revocation and expiration. Option D terminates the POA because 19 CFR 141.39(b) states that a change in partnership membership creates a new firm, rendering the prior POA invalid. Option C, however, does not terminate the original POA but instead establishes a new one with a different broker, leaving the prior arrangement intact.

Q21. You have received a “documents required” notification after the entry summary was filed. In reviewing the invoice, you handwrite additional information on the invoice to provide all required information, including the addition to the description of the bedspreads that the bedspread contains edging. Which ONE of the regulations listed below contains the requirement that prompted you to change the description as shown on the invoice provided?

  1. A19 CFR 141.86(a)(3)
  2. B19 CFR 141.86(h)(3)
  3. C19 CFR 141.89(a)
  4. D19 CFR 142.6(a)(4)
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: C  · Authority: 19 CFR 141.89(a)

The correct answer is C (19 CFR 141.89(a)) because it mandates that invoices include specific additional information necessary for accurate classification, such as details about the composition or construction of the merchandise (e.g., edging on bedspreads). While the HTSUS text provided does not explicitly mention bedspreads, the regulation’s purpose aligns with the scenario: ensuring the invoice contains sufficient detail to determine the correct tariff classification. Tempting options like A and B (19 CFR 141.86) pertain to marking and documentation requirements, not invoice content, while D (19 CFR 142.6(a)(4)) relates to entry summary corrections, not invoice accuracy.

Q70. Which of the following is considered an assist and should be included in the entered value?

  1. AThe cost of engineering plans produced in Omaha, Nebraska for switch assemblies that are supplied free of charge by a U.S. importer to a foreign producer of switches in Taipei, Taiwan.
  2. BThe cost of printed circuit assemblies that will be integrated into timing switches that are purchased by a foreign producer of switch assemblies produced in Taipei, Taiwan.
  3. CThe cost of a factory air conditioning system that was supplied free of charge by a U.S. importer to a foreign producer of switches in Taipei, Taiwan.
  4. DThe cost of printed circuit assembly components for switch integration that are supplied free of charge by a U.S. importer to a foreign producer of switches in Taipei, Taiwan.
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: D  · Authority: 19 CFR 152.102(a)

The correct answer is D because the printed circuit assembly components are materials incorporated into the imported merchandise (switches), satisfying 19 CFR 152.102(a)(1)(i), which defines "assist" as materials or components used in the production of imported goods. Option A is excluded because engineering plans produced in the U.S. are not considered assists under 152.102(a)(2)(i), which excludes services performed by U.S.-domiciled individuals. Option B is not an assist because the printed circuit assemblies are purchased, not supplied free of charge, violating the "free of charge" requirement in 152.102(a)(1). Option C is not an assist because a factory air conditioning system is not a tool, die, or mold used in production, and its inclusion in the definition is not explicitly supported by the HTSUS text.

Q27. Bake 4U, Inc.(B4U) imports bulk pastry dough. The dough is subject to a tariff-rate quota, with an annual aggregate limit of 3,500,000 kg. The 2026 quota period runs from April 1, 2026, through March 30, 2027. B4U sources its pastry dough from the Netherlands, and at importation admits the dough into a Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) in Texas. The dough is admitted in privileged foreigh status. Within its subzone, B4U operates commercial baking machines in temperature controlled facilities wherein the dough is used to create individually portioned baked pastries that are packaged into designer cartons for bulk sale to hotel and restaurant groups across Texas. B4U files the requisite entry for consumption in order to withdraw the baked pastries from the FTZ. Today, an emergency arose in B4U's subzone due to a failure of the temperature controlled refrigerators. To prevent the dough in those refrigerators from becoming unuseable, B4U decided to immediately bake all of the affected dough in its commercial baking machines. Since this will result in B4U producing a greater amount of pastries than it can package into designer cartons for bulk sale to restaurant and hotel groups, B4U has decided to sell its excess pastries at retail on-site to all persons who work at the FTZ. As of today, the annual dough quota has not yet filled. Under these facts, which of the following answer choices is a TRUE statement?

  1. AThe dough B4U imports is eligible to obtain quota status upon submission of CBP Form 214 in proper form, to achieve admission in privileged foreign status.
  2. BDue to the emergency, B4U may elect nonprivileged foreign status for the affected dough, which is baked into pastries for retail sale within the FTZ.
  3. CThe pastries B4U withdraws from an FTZ for bulk sale are only eligible for the higher non-quota duty rate in effect on the date privileged foreign status was granted.
  4. DThe pastries B4U withdraws from an FTZ for bulk sale are eligible to obtain a lower in-quota duty rate upon presentation of an entry summary in proper form, and will be dutiable in accordance with their condition at withdrawal from the FTZ.
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: C  · Authority: 19 CFR 132.11(a)-(b); 19 CFR 146.14; 19 CFR 146.41(e); 19 CFR 146.65(a)(1)

The correct answer is C because the pastries are subject to the duty rate in effect when the dough was admitted into the FTZ in privileged foreign status, as per 19 CFR 132.11(a)-(b). Quota status is determined at the time of entry or withdrawal for consumption, not at the time of sale, so the higher non-quota rate applies regardless of subsequent use. Option A is incorrect because privileged foreign status is already granted, not requiring CBP Form 214 for quota eligibility. Option B is invalid because emergency circumstances do not permit changing the status from privileged to nonprivileged; the dough remains subject to the original duty rate. Option D is wrong because the in-quota rate depends on the entry summary’s submission timing, which was not done here, and the pastries are not eligible for a lower rate based on their condition at withdrawal.

That is 5 of 71. Sit the full April 2026 exam →

Answers and citations are from CBP's published answer key. CBP does not modify answer keys after appeal decisions, so where an appeal later overturned an answer, the key still shows the original.

What this exam was written against

The reference editions in force for this sitting. Editions matter: a question written against an older HTSUS or CFR can test a rule that has since changed.

Sit this exam

71 questions from this sitting are in the simulator, in their original exam order, on a 4 hour clock. Same order the candidates saw them in, same pace.

9 questions are left out: 2 depended on exhibits CBP never published or were credited to every candidate, and 7 tested law that has since changed. The directions screen notes this before you start, so nothing is a surprise mid exam.

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CBP's official answer keys for recent exams are on CBP's past-exams page (the five most recent sittings only). Last verified against cbp.gov: August 2, 2026.