U.S. Customs has implemented a 100% inspection of import cargo documentation.

For foreign trade enterprises exporting to the United States, a new reality has recently emerged. If you have recently encountered the status code "5H" within the AMS/ACE tracking system, you are in trouble.

Since early February 2026, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has intensified its document review efforts for imported cargo-particularly shipments originating from China.

According to feedback from industry insiders, thousands of shipping containers from China have currently been detained, and some have already been mandatorily returned to their origin. Detention periods range from a few days to several months, incurring substantial demurrage fees, storage costs, and return shipping charges; in severe cases, entire container loads result in a total financial loss.

Unlike routine "random inspections," this initiative represents a new wave of enforcement led by a specialized Rapid Document Review Unit-a strict, zero-tolerance crackdown. The U.S. Congress has allocated $20 billion in funding to CBP specifically for enforcement purposes. A portion of these funds was utilized to establish the Rapid Document Review Unit; this team now includes logistics veterans with extensive experience in the China trade sector who are adept at identifying various "tricks" and irregularities commonly found in customs declarations.

Common Trigger Causes:

• Undervaluation or concealment of cargo value (the most common cause).
• Vague, inaccurate, or inconsistent descriptions regarding product names or HS codes.
• Issues concerning the Importer of Record (IOR) qualifications (e.g., borrowing another party's customs bond, utilizing "shell" companies as importers, or having a party other than the actual cargo owner handle customs clearance).
• Missing mandatory certifications (such as FCC, CPSC, FDA, etc.).
• Significant discrepancies between declared data and historical records or market prices.
• suspicion of intellectual property infringement, concealed cargo, etc.

Within the U.S. Customs' Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) system, "5H" serves as a hold code for "Entry Processing Hold." This status indicates that a shipment has been flagged-either automatically by the system or manually by an officer-for a "Document Discrepancy Exam" due to suspicious details within the customs declaration documents. During this period, the cargo is placed on "HOLD" (locked status) and is prohibited from being released.

Unlike physical inspections (such as those utilizing sniffer dogs or X-ray scanning), the "5H" hold signifies a precise, targeted audit of your documentation.

CBP's ACE system no longer relies on manual sampling; instead, it leverages artificial intelligence (AI) to conduct a 100% quality audit of all cargo manifest data. U.S. Customs fully automated its ACE system on September 27, 2025. For instance, if your declared value is 30% lower than the market average, the system will issue a warning before the shipment undergoes manual review.

In effect, this means that U.S. Customs has achieved a 100% examination rate for import declarations.