A customs broker is the person who gets goods legally across the border. You identify what a product is, find the right tariff code, work out the duty, file the entry with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and keep the client out of trouble. In the US, you become a licensed broker by passing the Customs Broker License Exam (CBLE), but most people start as entry writers or clerks at a brokerage and learn on the job. This roadmap takes you from zero to working in a brokerage, then to licensed, then to a specialist who handles complex cases like duty drawback, free trade agreements and pe
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Stage 1 of 3 · about 8 weeks
Understand how an import shipment moves, read the core documents, and look up a basic tariff classification.
How an import entry works
Everything you do hangs on this flow. Goods arrive, documents are filed, CBP reviews them, duties are paid, and goods are released. If you know the sequence, every later rule has a place to sit.
Shipping documents and Incoterms
A broker works from paperwork. If an invoice is missing a detail, the entry is wrong. Incoterms such as FOB, CIF and DDP also decide who pays freight and who carries risk, and that changes the customs value.
Harmonized Tariff Schedule basics
The HTS is the book of codes that decides your duty rate. It is built on the World Customs Organization's Harmonized System, with 6 digits shared worldwide and 10 digits used in the US. Classification is the heart of the job.
Office tools for trade work
Brokers track entries, rates and deadlines in spreadsheets and email all day. Clean data stops expensive errors.
Then 2 more stages (about 44 weeks in all) with lessons, drills, projects, 6 interview questions with strong answers and free resources.