CBLEsim

May 2024 Customs Broker Exam

The May 2024 customs broker license exam (CBLE) was an open-book sitting of 80 multiple-choice questions in 4.5 hours, with 60 correct needed to pass. 77 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

The spring 2024 exam was administered in May rather than the usual fourth Wednesday of April, the one recent exception to the spring pattern. CBP lists it as the May 2024 exam, and plenty of study material gets the name wrong.

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. Which of the following statements is FALSE?

  1. AOnly customs brokers who have been approved for a National Permit are required to pay the annual user fee every year.
  2. BAll customs brokers are required to file the triennial status report and pay the associated fee every three years after 1985.
  3. CEvery applicant for a customs broker's license must pay an application fee, the amount of which is based upon whether the applicant is an individual, a partnership, an association, or a corporation.
  4. DAll customs brokers are required to file an annual status report and pay the annual user fee every year after 1985.
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: D  · Authority: 19 CFR 111.96

The credited answer is D) All customs brokers are required to file an annual status report and pay the annual user fee every year after 1985. The cited text reads: (a) License fee; examination fee; fingerprint fee. Each applicant for a broker's license pursuant to § 111.12 must pay a fee of $300 for an individual license application and $500 for a partnership, association, or corporation license application to defray the costs to CBP in processing the application.

Q18. Baltimore Quick Printers is an active client of Fast Broker LLC with a power of attorney executed on May 1, 2020. Please refer to the provided broker's invoice for the "NOTICE TO CLIENT OF METHOD OF PAYMENT" (Notice) language. If the invoice did not contain this Notice, which of the statement(s) is/are correct regarding the broker's obligation to provide active clients this language? I. The notice is not required by Customs regulations. II. The notice is required on every broker invoice to active clients under the Customs regulations. III. The notice is required on or attached to the power of attorney between the broker and the client under the Customs regulations. IV. The notice is required in writing at least once per 12-month period under the Customs regulations.

  1. AI.
  2. BII.
  3. CII. And IV.
  4. DIII. And IV
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: D  · Authority: 19 CFR 111.29(b)(2)

The correct answer is D because 19 CFR 111.29(b)(2) explicitly requires the notice to be on or attached to the power of attorney (supporting III) and mandates that it be provided to active clients at least once every 12 months (supporting IV). Statement I is incorrect because the regulation clearly requires the notice, and Statement II is incorrect because the regulation does not mandate the notice on every invoice but rather on the power of attorney and periodically.

Q51. What is the earliest possible time that duties and the liability for their payment accrue on imported commercial goods arriving by vessel?

  1. AUpon arrival of the importing vessel within a Customs port of entry with the intent then and there to unlade.
  2. BUpon the departure of the importing vessel from a foreign port of lading with the intent to unlade at a U.S. Customs port of entry.
  3. CUpon the filing of the entry information on Form 3461 or its electronic equivalent and obtaining a clearance from CBP.
  4. DUpon filing an entry summary on CBP Form 7501 or its electronic equivalent and scheduling the duty payment on a statement.
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: A  · Authority: 19 CFR 141.1

The correct answer is A because 19 CFR 141.1(a) explicitly states that duties and liability for their payment accrue upon the arrival of the importing vessel within a Customs port with the intent to unlade. This aligns directly with option A, which captures the precise moment of accrual as defined by the regulation. Option B is incorrect because the departure from a foreign port does not trigger duty accrual under the cited authority, which focuses on arrival within the U.S. Option C and D refer to procedural steps (filing forms or scheduling payments) that occur after duty accrual, not the moment it begins. The regulation does not tie accrual to entry filing or payment scheduling, making those options irrelevant to the question.

Q78. Which statement is FALSE with respect to the applicable rates of duty?

  1. ASubject to exceptions specified in the Customs Regulations, rates of duty applicable to merchandise shall be the rates in effect at the "time of entry," which is defined in 19 CFR 141.68.
  2. BMerchandise entered for warehouse is dutiable at the rates in effect at the time withdrawal for consumption is made in accordance with 19 CFR 141.68(g).
  3. CDutiable merchandise eligible for informal mail entry is dutiable at the rates in effect at the time the preparation of the entry documentation by a CBP employee is completed.
  4. DFor quota-class merchandise where the quota period opens in one calendar year and closes in another calendar year, the applicable rate of duty shall be determined at the time of liquidation.
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: D  · Authority: 19 CFR 141.68, 19 CFR 132.11a

The correct answer is D because 19 CFR 132.11a explicitly states that the applicable rate of duty for quota-class merchandise is determined at the time of entry, not at the time of liquidation. The other options align with 19 CFR 141.68, which defines the "time of entry" for various scenarios (e.g., informal mail entry in (f), warehouse withdrawal in (g)), ensuring duty rates are based on the entry time. Option D incorrectly shifts the determination to liquidation, which is not supported by the cited authority.

Q62. Use the provided calendar and the following entry record information to determine the answer with the correct dates in order for 1) entry filing due date, 2) final possible post-summary correction (PSC) submission date without an extension, and 3) final protest submission date. If any single date in the series is incorrect, the entire answer is incorrect. • The shipment is of commercial goods whose entered value exceeds $2,500.00, and it arrived at the port of entry on February 15, 2024. • The date of entry is the same date that the broker filed entry and is February 16, 2024. • Broker filed entry summary and paid the amount due on March 4, 2024. • Broker filed a PSC on April 15, 2024, requesting a refund and accelerated liquidation. CBP disagreed in part with the PSC, and the entry liquidated on April 26, 2024.

  1. AMarch 1, 2024; December 12, 2024; October 23, 2024
  2. BFebruary 15, 2024; April 15, 2024; August 15, 2024
  3. CMarch 7, 2024; December 10, 2024;July 25, 2024
  4. DMarch 1, 2024; December 10, 2024; October 23, 2024
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: A  · Authority: 19 CFR 141.5; ACE BRPD, Chapter 6; 19 CFR 174.12(e)

The credited answer is A) March 1, 2024; December 12, 2024; October 23, 2024. The cited text reads: Merchandise for which entry is required will be entered within 15 calendar days after landing from a vessel, aircraft or vehicle, or after arrival at the port of destination in the case of merchandise transported in bond. Merchandise for which timely entry is not made will be treated in accordance with § 4.37 or § 122.50 or § 123.10 of this chapter.

That is 5 of 77. Sit the full May 2024 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

77 questions from this sitting are in the simulator, in their original exam order, on a 4 hour 20 minute clock. Same order the candidates saw them in, same pace.

3 questions are left out: 1 depended on exhibits CBP never published or were credited to every candidate, and 2 tested law that has since changed. The directions screen notes this before you start, so nothing is a surprise mid exam.

Sit the May 2024 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.