US Laws, Codes, Statutes & Cases

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[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 19USC1490]

 
                        TITLE 19--CUSTOMS DUTIES
 
                      CHAPTER 4--TARIFF ACT OF 1930
 
                 SUBTITLE III--ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
 
       Part III--Ascertainment, Collection, and Recovery of Duties
 
Sec. 1490. General orders


(a) Incomplete entry

    (1) Whenever--
        (A) the entry of any imported merchandise is not made within the 
    time provided by law or by regulation prescribed by the Secretary;
        (B) the entry of imported merchandise is incomplete because of 
    failure to pay the estimated duties, fees, or interest;
        (C) in the opinion of the Customs Service, the entry of imported 
    merchandise cannot be made for want of proper documents or other 
    cause; or
        (D) the Customs Service believes that any merchandise is not 
    correctly and legally invoiced;

the carrier (unless subject to subsection (c) of this section) shall 
notify the bonded warehouse of such unentered merchandise.
    (2) After notification under paragraph (1), the bonded warehouse 
shall arrange for the transportation and storage of the merchandise at 
the risk and expense of the consignee. The merchandise shall remain in 
the bonded warehouse until--
        (A) entry is made or completed and the proper documents are 
    produced;
        (B) the information and data necessary for entry are transmitted 
    to the Customs Service pursuant to an authorized electronic data 
    interchange system; or
        (C) a bond is given for the production of documents or the 
    transmittal of data.

(b) Request for possession by Customs

    At the request of the consignee of any merchandise, or of the owner 
or master of the vessel or the person in charge of the vehicle in which 
the same is imported, any merchandise may be taken possession of by the 
Customs Service after the expiration of one day after the entry of the 
vessel or report of the vehicle and may be unladen and held at the risk 
and expense of the consignee until entry thereof is made.

(c) Government merchandise

    Any imported merchandise that--
        (1) is described in any of subparagraphs (A) through (D) of 
    subsection (a)(1) of this section; and
        (2) is consigned to, or owned by, the United States Government;

shall be stored and disposed of in accordance with such rules and 
procedures as the Secretary shall by regulation prescribe.

(June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, Sec. 490, 46 Stat. 726; Pub. L. 91-
271, title III, Sec. 301(b), June 2, 1970, 84 Stat. 287; Pub. L. 103-
182, title VI, Sec. 658, Dec. 8, 1993, 107 Stat. 2212; Pub. L. 104-295, 
Sec. 21(e)(9), Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3531.)


                            Prior Provisions

    Provisions similar to those in this section were contained in act 
Sept. 21, 1922, ch. 356, title IV, Sec. 490, 42 Stat. 963. That section 
was superseded by section 490 of act June 17, 1930, comprising this 
section, and repealed by section 651(a)(1) of the 1930 act.
    Prior provisions authorizing the collector to take possession of, or 
store merchandise were contained in the following sections, all of which 
were repealed by act Sept. 21, 1922, ch. 356, title IV, Sec. 642, 42 
Stat. 989:
    R.S. Sec. 2789, authorizing the collector, when an entry was 
imperfect, to take the merchandise into his custody until the quantity, 
quality, or value could be ascertained;
    R.S. Sec. 2840, providing that when the collector should suspect 
that merchandise was not invoiced at a sum equal to that for which it 
had usually been sold, he should take possession and retain the same 
until its value had been ascertained and the duties paid or secured;
    R.S. Sec. 2926, providing that merchandise of which incomplete entry 
had been made, or entry without specification of particulars, should be 
conveyed to some warehouse or designated by the collector to remain 
until the particulars, cost or value should have been ascertained, and 
the duties paid or secured, and a permit for delivery granted;
    R.S. Sec. 2963, providing that when merchandise had not been entered 
it should be deposited in a public warehouse, and there remain until an 
invoice was produced, but that it should not be construed to prohibit 
sales of merchandise to discharge duties and charges;
    R.S. Sec. 2964, authorizing the collector to take possession of 
merchandise, and deposit it in public stores, or other stores to be 
agreed on, in case of failure or neglect to pay duties, or when the 
owner, etc., should make entry for warehousing;
    R.S. Sec. 2965, providing for the storage in a public warehouse, or 
private bonded warehouse, of unclaimed merchandise required to be taken 
possession of by collectors, and making provision for payment of charges 
and expenses;
    R.S. Sec. 2966, as amended by act June 26, 1884, ch. 121, Sec. 24, 
23 Stat. 58, providing for the deposit in a bonded warehouse of 
merchandise imported in vessels, when it should appear by the bills of 
lading that it was to be delivered immediately after entry of the 
vessel, or on request, when it did not so appear.
    A prior provision authorizing the collector to require a bond for 
the production of proof to enable the collector to ascertain the class 
or description of manufacture, or rate of duty to which merchandise was 
liable, was contained in R.S. Sec. 2925, which was also repealed by act 
Sept. 21, 1922, ch. 356, title IV, Sec. 642, 42 Stat. 989.


                               Amendments

    1996--Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 104-295 substituted ``subparagraphs 
(A) through (D) of subsection (a)(1)'' for ``paragraphs (1) through (4) 
of subsection (a)''.
    1993--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103-182, Sec. 658(1), amended subsec. (a) 
generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (a) read as follows: ``Whenever 
entry of any imported merchandise is not made within the time provided 
by law or the regulations prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury, 
or whenever entry of such merchandise is incomplete because of failure 
to pay the estimated duties, or whenever, in the opinion of the 
appropriate customs officer, entry of such merchandise can not be made 
for want of proper documents or other cause, or whenever the appropriate 
customs officer believes that any merchandise is not correctly and 
legally invoiced, he shall take the merchandise into his custody and 
send it to a bonded warehouse or public store, to be held at the risk 
and expense of the consignee until entry is made or completed and the 
proper documents are produced, or a bond given for their production.''
    Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 103-182, Sec. 658(2), substituted heading for 
one which read ``At request of consignee'' and in text substituted 
``Customs Service'' for ``appropriate customs officer''.
    Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 103-182, Sec. 658(3), added subsec. (c).
    1970--Pub. L. 91-271 substituted references to appropriate customs 
officer for references to collector wherever appearing.


                    Effective Date of 1970 Amendment

    For effective date of amendment by Pub. L. 91-271, see section 203 
of Pub. L. 91-271, set out as a note under section 1500 of this title.

                          Transfer of Functions

    For transfer of functions, personnel, assets, and liabilities of the 
United States Customs Service of the Department of the Treasury, 
including functions of the Secretary of the Treasury relating thereto, 
to the Secretary of Homeland Security, and for treatment of related 
references, see sections 203(1), 551(d), 552(d), and 557 of Title 6, 
Domestic Security, and the Department of Homeland Security 
Reorganization Plan of November 25, 2002, as modified, set out as a note 
under section 542 of Title 6.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 1448, 1484, 1491 of this 
title.