CBP Form 3299: Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles Explained

Key Points

• CBP Form 3299, Declaration for Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles, is the declaration used for personal and household effects that arrive separately from the traveler, whether that traveler is a returning resident, an immigrant, or a nonresident.
• The owner of the goods completes and signs CBP Form 3299, usually with help from a household goods forwarder or a licensed broker, and it is presented with the shipment at the port together with passport and arrival details.
• CBP Form 3299 supports the traveler's duty-free personal exemptions; it is not itself a commercial entry, and the broker still files an informal or formal entry alongside it when CBP requires one.
• Commercial merchandise must never be declared on CBP Form 3299, and restricted goods mixed into the effects, such as alcohol, firearms, food, or plants, are a leading cause of holds.
• As of September 2026, the most common failures are a missing signature or missing arrival data and shipments sitting on hold while storage charges accrue.

On this page

1. What CBP Form 3299 is
2. At a glance
3. Who prepares and signs CBP Form 3299?
4. When in the entry lifecycle is CBP Form 3299 used?
5. How is CBP Form 3299 filed and reviewed?
6. Common CBP Form 3299 errors and what they cost
7. How CBP Form 3299 relates to other CBP forms
8. Frequently asked questions
9. What importers and brokers should do
10. Key references

CBP Form 3299 is the Declaration for Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles, the form on which the owner of personal and household effects declares those goods to U.S. Customs and Border Protection when they arrive separately from the traveler. It is used by returning residents, immigrants, and nonresidents, prepared and signed by the owner of the goods and usually handled in practice by a household goods forwarder or a customs broker, and it sits at the release stage of the shipment's lifecycle, supporting the traveler's duty-free personal exemptions rather than functioning as a commercial entry in its own right.

The links in this article go to the primary documents: the official CBP form page, the regulations, and the tariff schedule themselves. Read the source, and confirm the current version of any form before you file it.

At a glance

• Full name: CBP Form 3299, Declaration for Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles (the cbp.gov form page uses both wordings, Declaration for Free Entry and Declaration of Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles).
• Who prepares or uses it: the owner of the goods completes and signs it, typically through a household goods forwarder or a licensed customs broker acting on the owner's behalf.
• When in the lifecycle: at arrival of the unaccompanied shipment, presented with the shipment at the port before release.
• System or channel: varies by port and by the forwarder or broker handling the move; confirm the accepted submission channel with CBP at the port of arrival.
• Governing authority: U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
• Supporting documents: passport and arrival details for the traveler, plus a packing list or inventory of the effects.
• Related terms: CBP Form 3311, CBP Form 4455, CBP Form 7523, CBP Form 4647.

Who prepares and signs CBP Form 3299?

CBP Form 3299 must be completed and signed by the owner of the goods, not by the carrier and not by a mover signing in the owner's place. In a typical international household move, the origin agent or the destination household goods forwarder sends the blank form to the transferee, collects it back with a passport copy and the traveler's flight or vessel arrival information, and passes the package to the customs broker who clears the shipment. The broker's role is to check the declaration for completeness and consistency, to flag anything on the inventory that does not belong on a personal effects declaration, and to file whatever entry CBP requires alongside it.

Because CBP Form 3299 is a declaration by the owner, a broker cannot repair a defective signature by signing for the client. If the signature block is blank or the signer is not the owner, the form goes back to the owner. This is the single most avoidable delay in the process, and it is why experienced forwarders chase the signed form before the container sails rather than after it lands.

When in the entry lifecycle is CBP Form 3299 used?

CBP Form 3299 is used when the personal and household effects arrive on a separate conveyance from the traveler, which is the defining fact behind the word "unaccompanied." Goods carried in checked baggage on the same flight are handled as accompanied baggage at the passenger processing stage instead. The unaccompanied shipment normally arrives by ocean container, air freight, or truck after the traveler has already entered the United States, and it must be declared on arrival with the traveler's arrival details so CBP can tie the shipment back to the person claiming the exemption.

Where CBP requires a formal or informal entry for the shipment, the broker files that entry in the ordinary way and presents CBP Form 3299 as the supporting declaration for the free entry claim. The declaration supports the traveler's duty-free personal exemptions; it does not replace the entry, the bond, or the ordinary release process. Whether a given shipment needs an entry, and which type, depends on the facts and the port, so confirm with the broker or with CBP at the port of arrival rather than assuming.

How is CBP Form 3299 filed and reviewed?

CBP Form 3299 is presented with the shipment at the port, together with the traveler's passport and arrival details and an inventory of the effects. A CBP officer reviews the declaration against the inventory and the entry paperwork, and may order an examination of the shipment. Officers are looking for three things: that the declarant is the person entitled to the claimed exemption, that the arrival details support an unaccompanied-articles claim, and that nothing in the container is commercial merchandise or a restricted commodity.

Submission mechanics differ between ports and between the ocean, air, and land environments, and the accepted channel for the paper or scanned declaration is not uniform. Confirm the current form version and the accepted submission method on the cbp.gov form page or directly with the port before shipping.

Common CBP Form 3299 errors and what they cost

The failures that hold shipments on CBP Form 3299 are usually clerical rather than substantive. The recurring ones are:

• Missing signature. An unsigned declaration is not a declaration, and the shipment waits until the owner signs.
• Missing or inconsistent arrival data. No arrival date, no flight or vessel information, or arrival details that do not match the passport record.
• Commercial goods on the declaration. Inventory, samples, or goods for resale do not belong on CBP Form 3299 and must be entered as commercial merchandise.
• Restricted items among the effects. Alcohol, firearms, food, and plants each carry their own requirements and frequently trigger examination, partner agency involvement, or seizure.

The direct cost of these errors is rarely a duty assessment. It is time: the container sits, demurrage and warehouse storage charges accrue against the household goods account, and the transferee's family waits. Once an examination is ordered, the cost of the exam is on the shipment as well. Screening the inventory before departure is far cheaper than arguing about it at the pier.

How CBP Form 3299 relates to other CBP forms

CBP Form 3299 is one of several free entry declarations, and mixing them up is a common source of confusion. CBP Form 3311, Declaration for Free Entry of Returned American Products, is the declaration for duty-free return of U.S.-origin goods under HTSUS 9801.00.10 (19 CFR 10.1); it covers returning American goods, not a traveler's household effects, and we cover it in detail in our CBP Form 3311 reference entry. CBP Form 4455, Certificate of Registration, registers identifiable goods by serial number or mark with CBP before export so they can return duty free under Chapter 98 (9801, 9802 repairs); it is not an ATA carnet, and travelers sometimes use it for high-value items they take abroad. CBP Form 7523, Entry and Manifest of Merchandise Free of Duty, Carrier's Certificate and Release, is a paper entry for low-value duty-free goods that also serves as a carrier release and a small-vehicle inward manifest.

On the enforcement side, CBP Form 4647, Notice to Mark and/or Redeliver, is CBP's notice that articles or containers are not marked with country of origin and orders marking, redelivery, export, or destruction (19 CFR 134.51). Marking issues are a commercial-goods problem, which is another reason commercial merchandise must not ride on a personal effects declaration.

Several forms in this cluster belong to unrelated programs and never appear in a household goods move: CBP Form 216, Application for Foreign-Trade Zone Activity Permit, requests CBP approval to manipulate, manufacture, exhibit, or destroy merchandise inside a foreign-trade zone; CBP Form 7551, Drawback Entry, is the paper drawback claim abolished with TFTEA drawback, with claims now filed electronically in ACE under 19 CFR part 190; CBP Form 7552, Delivery Certificate for Purposes of Drawback, was the certificate for transfers of merchandise between parties for drawback and was abolished under TFTEA, replaced by 19 CFR 190.10 transfer records, as explained in our CBP Form 7552 article; and CBP Form 7553, Notice of Intent to Export, Destroy or Return Merchandise for Purposes of Drawback, lets CBP examine goods before export or destruction for a drawback claim.

If something does go wrong after release, CBP Form 5955A, Notice of Penalty or Liquidated Damages Incurred and Demand for Payment, is the Fines, Penalties and Forfeitures notice claiming a penalty or bond liquidated damages, and it is not a duty bill. CBP Form 6084 is CBP's bill form, the mailed bill for money owed to CBP such as supplemental duties, taxes, fees, or interest after liquidation or a rejected payment.

Frequently asked questions

Does CBP Form 3299 replace a customs entry?

No. CBP Form 3299 is a declaration that supports the traveler's duty-free personal exemptions for unaccompanied personal and household effects. Where CBP requires an entry for the shipment, the broker files an informal or formal entry alongside CBP Form 3299.

Can a broker or mover sign CBP Form 3299 for the traveler?

CBP Form 3299 is completed and signed by the owner of the goods. A household goods forwarder or broker normally prepares and transmits the paperwork, but the owner's signature is what makes the declaration valid, and a missing signature is one of the most common reasons shipments sit at the port.

Can commercial goods be listed on CBP Form 3299?

No. Commercial merchandise must not be declared on CBP Form 3299. Goods for sale, business inventory, and samples have to be entered as commercial merchandise with the correct classification and value; mixing them into a personal effects shipment invites examination and delay.

What happens if alcohol, firearms, food, or plants are in the shipment?

Restricted commodities found among the effects declared on CBP Form 3299 typically stop the release while CBP and any partner agency with jurisdiction review them. Confirm the requirements for each such commodity with CBP or the responsible agency before the shipment moves, because storage charges accrue while the container is held.

What importers and brokers should do

• Collect the signed CBP Form 3299, the passport copy, and the traveler's arrival details before the shipment departs origin, and check the signature block and arrival fields line by line.
• Review the packing inventory for commercial merchandise and for alcohol, firearms, food, or plants, and resolve each item before the container loads.
• Download the current CBP Form 3299 from the cbp.gov forms page each time rather than reusing a stored PDF, and confirm the port's accepted submission channel with the broker or CBP.
• Decide early, with the broker, whether CBP will require an informal or formal entry alongside CBP Form 3299 so the entry package is ready on arrival.

Key references

• CBP forms page (cbp.gov): official source for the current CBP Form 3299, Declaration for Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles, and the other CBP forms named here.
• Title 19 of the Code of Federal Regulations (ecfr.gov): the customs regulations, including 19 CFR 10.1, 19 CFR 134.51, 19 CFR part 190, and 19 CFR 190.10 referenced for the related forms.
• Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (hts.usitc.gov): the official tariff schedule, including Chapter 98 provisions such as 9801.00.10 cited for CBP Form 3311 and CBP Form 4455.
• Title 19 of the U.S. Code (law.cornell.edu): the customs statutes underlying entry, release, and penalty procedures.
• CBP Form 3311: Free Entry of Returned American Products: the companion free entry declaration for U.S.-origin goods returning to the United States.