The main government entity for US import compliance is the US Customs and Border Protection agency. Charged with regulating and facilitating international trade, immigration and collecting import duties and fees. It became an official agency of the US Department of Homeland Security in 2003 where it expanded its border patrol enforcement and the creation of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

US Customs relies on 19^th chapter of the Code of Federal Regulations covering Customs Duties, commonly called the 19CFR. The 19CFR is a codification of the general and permanent rules published in the Federal Register by the executive branch. The unique thing about the 19CFR is that it is the only set of regulations that the US government tests individuals on. If you are interested in becoming a US Customs broker, you have to take a government issued exam covering the regulations found in the 19CFR.

With a workforce of over 58,000 employees, agents and officers, CBP has the largest law enforcement agency in the USA and is the second largest revenue-collecting source for the Federal Government. They have three core missions, counterterrorism, border security and trade enforcement. CBP has jurisdiction over 328 ports of entry in the USA that allows them to inspect, seize and/or reject merchandise/people prior to entering the country.

There are many sub-agencies and organizations under the CBP umbrella such as trade, border patrol, operations support, chief counsel, congressional affairs, field operations, public affairs, trade relations and so on.

The Office of Field Operations (OFO) is a sub-agency of the CBP responsible for enforcement at the ports of entry. Headed by the CBP Assistance Commissioner, the OFO includes more than 22,000 field officers stationed domestically and abroad. These officers are the people who will have the most interactions with businesses and individuals facilitating imports.  Within the OFO are the CBP agriculture specialists tasked with enforcing laws governed by the USDA, Fish and Wildlife Services, CDC and FDA.

CBP recognizes other government agencies needs to review certain imports to ensure compliance with their own codified regulations. these other government agencies are often called Partnering Government Agencies (PGA)