The June 3, 2026 Executive Order “Strengthening Customs Enforcement” reshapes the penalty landscape for US Importers of Record and customs brokers. This is a plain-language reference covering the 50 percent penalty floor, broker due diligence expectations, and the 90-day and 180-day implementation timelines.
On June 3, 2026, President Trump signed an Executive Order titled "Strengthening Customs Enforcement." For US importers and customs brokers, the order represents the most significant tightening of the customs penalty framework in recent years. The implementation work begins immediately, with the first revisions due from CBP and DHS within 90 days.
The headline change is on the penalty side. Historically, mitigation has been routinely applied to assessed customs penalties, with reductions of 70 to 90 percent common where the importer could demonstrate good faith and corrective action. The Executive Order directs CBP to establish a minimum penalty floor of not less than 50 percent of the assessed penalty, with exceptions reserved for circumstances that materially impact national security. For repeat offenders, mitigation is eliminated entirely. A minimum liquidated damages floor is also being established under the same 90-day timeline.
The change directed at customs brokers is the one that has produced the most immediate attention in the industry. The Executive Order directs CBP to impose maximum penalties on brokers who fail to conduct due diligence on their clients, repeatedly represent non-compliant clients, or fail to cooperate with CBP information requests in a timely manner. The "due diligence" standard is not new — it tracks the existing responsible supervision and control framework under 19 U.S.C. § 1641 — but the EO directs CBP to apply the maximum penalties available under that framework, removing the practical mitigation paths brokers have historically relied on.
Importer of Record eligibility is the other major change. Within 180 days, DHS is directed to revise IOR requirements. Anticipated changes include increased bond coverage, minimum tangible domestic asset requirements, additional identification data, beneficial ownership disclosure, business affiliation information, and risk-based tiering of the IOR registry. Foreign IORs are subject to specific new restrictions. The IOR registry itself is being overhauled, with inactive importers removed and "good standing" required to maintain importing rights.
The international parallel is the UK First-tier Tribunal decision in Roseline Logistics Limited v HMRC, handed down on 15 April 2025. The tribunal held a UK customs agent jointly and severally liable for approximately £1.13 million in unpaid import VAT after the agent had filed declarations on behalf of an importer whose VAT registration had been cancelled. Crucially, the tribunal found the agent liable despite no intent to breach customs law and despite the agent acting on instructions from a third-party intermediary. The finding rested on the agent's failure to verify the underlying compliance of the importer — a due diligence failure substantially aligned with the standard the US Executive Order now directs CBP to enforce.
For brokers and IORs operating under the new environment, the practical question is what defensible due diligence looks like in an audit. The Trade Compliance Records reference addresses the documentation practices that support a defensible audit trail: supplier verification records, tamper-evident certificates and attestations, retention for the statutory periods applicable to the relevant declarations, and verification URLs that allow CBP or an equivalent foreign authority to confirm the integrity of the documentation independently of the broker or importer.
For the full reference on the June 2026 Executive Order, the Roseline parallel, and the documentation practices that support a defensible due diligence posture, visit tradecompliancerecords.com.
