CBP Form 3495: Exporting Goods Under a Temporary Import Bond

Key Points

• CBP Form 3495, Application for Exportation of Articles Under Special Bond, is the notice an importer or its broker files before exporting merchandise that entered under a temporary importation bond, so CBP can supervise the export or waive supervision.
• The form exists to close the loop on a temporary importation under bond: without an accepted notice and acceptable proof of export, the special bond stays open and exposure to liquidated damages remains.
• CBP Form 3495 is governed by the temporary importation provisions at 19 CFR 10.31 through 10.40, with the exportation procedure at 19 CFR 10.38, and the goods themselves enter under the temporary importation subheadings of HTSUS chapter 98 heading 9813.
• The temporary importation bond is generally set at double the estimated duties, subject to the exceptions 19 CFR 10.31 names, so a missed export can cost far more than ordinary duty.
• CBP Form 3495 is not a drawback notice; notice of intent to export for drawback purposes is CBP Form 7553, and the two are filed for different reasons.

On this page

1. What CBP Form 3495 is
2. At a glance
3. Where CBP Form 3495 comes from in the regulations
4. When is CBP Form 3495 filed in the TIB lifecycle?
5. Who is responsible for CBP Form 3495?
6. How is CBP Form 3495 filed and how is the export proved?
7. Common CBP Form 3495 errors and what they cost
8. How CBP Form 3495 relates to other CBP forms
9. Frequently asked questions
10. What importers and brokers should do
11. Key references

CBP Form 3495 is the application an importer or its licensed customs broker files with CBP before exporting merchandise that was admitted to the United States under a temporary importation bond, asking CBP to supervise the exportation or to waive supervision, so that the special bond can be cancelled. It is used by importers, brokers, and the port personnel who oversee bonded merchandise, and it sits at the closing end of the entry lifecycle, after release and before the temporary importation bond period runs out. As of October 2026, the exportation procedure for temporary importation entries is set out at 19 CFR 10.38, within the temporary importation rules at 19 CFR 10.31 through 10.40.

The links in this article go to the primary documents: the regulations, the official tariff schedule pages, and CBP's own form and program pages themselves. Read the source.

At a glance

• Full name: CBP Form 3495, Application for Exportation of Articles Under Special Bond
• Who prepares or uses it: the importer of record or its licensed customs broker, submitted to the port where the merchandise is to be exported
• When in the lifecycle: before physical exportation of merchandise entered under a temporary importation bond, and before the bond period expires
• System or channel: submitted to the port of exportation; confirm the current acceptable submission channel, paper or electronic, with the port and with CBP
• Governing authority: 19 CFR 10.38, within the temporary importation rules at 19 CFR 10.31 through 10.40; entry made under the temporary importation provisions of HTSUS heading 9813
• Bond amount context: the temporary importation bond is generally set at double the estimated duties, subject to the exceptions 19 CFR 10.31 names
• Related terms: CBP Form 3173 (extension of the temporary importation bond period), CBP Form 7501 (Entry Summary), CBP Form 3499 (manipulation permit), CBP Form 5291 (Power of Attorney)

Where CBP Form 3495 comes from in the regulations

CBP Form 3495 exists because merchandise entered under a temporary importation bond is admitted free of duty on a promise, and CBP needs a documented event to release the surety from that promise. Goods enter under the temporary importation provisions of HTSUS heading 9813 on the condition that they will be exported or destroyed within the allowed period rather than entering United States commerce. The conditions of that entry, including the classes of merchandise eligible and the bond requirement, appear at 19 CFR 10.31 through 10.40; the bond is generally set at double the estimated duties, with the exceptions that 19 CFR 10.31 itself names, so the cost of a failed temporary importation is not simply the duty that would have been owed. The exportation step, which CBP Form 3495 initiates, is addressed at 19 CFR 10.38.

When is CBP Form 3495 filed in the TIB lifecycle?

CBP Form 3495 is filed before the merchandise physically leaves the United States and in time for CBP to decide whether it wants to supervise the export. Filing it after the goods have already departed defeats the purpose: CBP has had no opportunity to examine, identify, or waive examination of the articles, and the port may be unwilling to treat the departure as a supervised exportation. In practice the schedule for CBP Form 3495 is driven by the expiration of the temporary importation bond period rather than by convenience. If the goods cannot be exported in time, the alternative is to seek more time rather than to export late: CBP Form 3173, Application for Extension of Bond for Temporary Importation, is the request to extend the one-year TIB period in one-year increments up to three years total, filed before the current period expires. Confirm the port's expected lead time for a CBP Form 3495 filing before booking the export.

Who is responsible for CBP Form 3495?

CBP Form 3495 is the responsibility of the importer of record who gave the temporary importation bond, even when a broker, freight forwarder, or the foreign owner of the equipment actually arranges the export movement. The surety on the bond has a direct financial interest, but the regulatory obligation to export and to document the export runs to the principal on the bond. Where a licensed customs broker handles the filing, it does so on the importer's written authority; CBP Form 5291, Power of Attorney, is the optional CBP format for the written authority an importer gives a licensed customs broker, or an employee, to transact customs business in its name. Importers that let the trade show organizer, repair vendor, or testing lab control the shipment should still own the CBP Form 3495 calendar internally, because the bill for a stale TIB arrives at the importer, not at the vendor.

How is CBP Form 3495 filed and how is the export proved?

CBP Form 3495 is presented to the port where the exportation will take place, identifying the original temporary importation entry, the articles, and the intended means and place of export, so that CBP can either station an officer to witness the lading or waive that supervision. Submission channels for this form have shifted over time between paper presentation at the port and electronic document transmission; confirm the currently accepted channel with the port of exportation or with CBP rather than assuming the method used on a prior entry still applies.

Proof of export

After the export, the file supporting a CBP Form 3495 should contain commercially credible evidence that the identified articles actually left the country: the carrier's documentation for the outbound movement, the bill of lading or air waybill naming the goods, dated departure records, and any endorsement or certification CBP returns on the application itself. The identification chain matters more than the volume of paper. Serial numbers, part numbers, and marks recorded at entry should match the ones on the export documents, because the question CBP asks on bond cancellation is whether the exported articles are the same articles that were admitted under the temporary importation bond.

Common CBP Form 3495 errors and what they cost

The most expensive CBP Form 3495 error is simply not filing one, and discovering at bond cancellation time that there is no supervised or waived exportation of record. Other recurring problems: exporting from a port other than the one named on the application without telling CBP; describing the articles so loosely that the export documents cannot be tied to the temporary importation entry; exporting a replacement unit rather than the admitted unit after a warranty swap; and letting the bond period lapse while waiting on a customer rather than filing CBP Form 3173 in time. Because the temporary importation bond is generally written at double the estimated duties, subject to the exceptions 19 CFR 10.31 names, the liquidated damages exposure from a failed exportation is materially larger than the duty saved, which is why mature compliance programs treat the CBP Form 3495 date as a hard milestone. If a demand does arrive, the general avenues for responding to CBP claims are discussed in our pieces on penalty and liquidated damages notices and prior disclosure.

How CBP Form 3495 relates to other CBP forms

CBP Form 3495 is one document in a family of bonded-merchandise filings, and confusing it with its neighbors is a common source of wasted effort. It is not a drawback notice: a notice of intent to export merchandise for drawback purposes is CBP Form 7553, filed for a refund claim rather than to cancel a temporary importation bond. It is also not the entry declaration. CBP Form 7501, Entry Summary, is the declaration of classification, value, origin, duties, taxes and fees for an entry, filed in ACE within 10 working days of release or with the entry, and it is the document every bill, refund and audit traces back to; a temporary importation entry still has an entry summary, and the entry summary record is where the CBP Form 3495 file should connect.

If the merchandise needs to be handled, repacked, or sampled while still under CBP custody, the permit vehicle is CBP Form 3499, Application and Approval to Manipulate, Examine, Sample or Transfer Goods, not CBP Form 3495. Where duty liability on the underlying entry has to be shifted or confirmed, the relevant documents are CBP Form 3347, Declaration of Owner for Merchandise Obtained Otherwise Than in Pursuance of a Purchase, and its companion CBP Form 3347A, Declaration of Consignee When Entry Is Made by an Agent. Warehouse operators tracking bonded inventory separately file CBP Form 300, Bonded Warehouse Proprietor's Submission, the proprietor's annual inventory reconciliation submission for a bonded warehouse.

On the arrival side, none of the manifest documents substitute for a CBP Form 3495: CBP Form 1302, Inward Cargo Declaration, is the vessel cargo manifest the master files on arrival; CBP Form 7509, Air Cargo Manifest, is the carrier's declaration of cargo on an arriving aircraft, now filed electronically through ACE air manifest with the paper form as the fallback; and CBP Form 7533, Inward Cargo Manifest for Vessel Under Five Tons, Ferry, Train, Car, Vehicle, etc. is the arrival manifest for cargo arriving by truck, rail or small vessel at the land border. Finally, travelers moving money alongside temporarily imported trade show goods should remember that FinCEN Form 105, Report of International Transportation of Currency or Monetary Instruments (CMIR), is the report filed with CBP when currency or monetary instruments above the reporting threshold are carried, shipped or mailed into or out of the United States; it is not a customs entry form and has nothing to do with bond cancellation.

Frequently asked questions

Does CBP always supervise the export covered by a CBP Form 3495?

No. CBP Form 3495 asks CBP to supervise the exportation, and CBP may instead waive supervision, in which case the importer still needs documentation that the identified articles left the United States. Treat waiver as a decision CBP makes on the application, not as something the filer may assume in advance.

Can CBP Form 3495 be filed after the goods have already been exported?

Filing CBP Form 3495 after departure undermines the purpose of the form, because CBP no longer has the option to examine or supervise the lading. If the export has already happened, discuss the situation with the port and the surety promptly rather than backdating anything, and confirm what evidence the port will accept.

What happens if the temporary importation bond period expires before CBP Form 3495 is filed?

If the bond period lapses without an exportation or destruction of record, the importer faces a claim under the bond, which is generally set at double the estimated duties subject to the exceptions 19 CFR 10.31 names. The preventive step is CBP Form 3173, the application for extension of the TIB period, filed before the current period expires rather than after.

Is CBP Form 3495 the same as a drawback notice of intent to export?

No. CBP Form 3495 cancels a temporary importation bond by documenting the export of duty-free admitted goods, while CBP Form 7553 supports a drawback claim for a refund of duties already paid. The underlying entries, the regulatory authority, and the financial outcome are different.

What importers and brokers should do

• Build a calendar entry for every temporary importation bond that triggers a CBP Form 3495 decision well before the bond period closes, with CBP Form 3173 as the fallback if the goods cannot leave in time.
• Record serial numbers, marks, and part numbers at entry and carry them unchanged onto the CBP Form 3495 and the export documents, so identification is never in dispute.
• Confirm with the intended port of exportation how CBP Form 3495 should currently be presented and how much notice it wants before lading.
• Read 19 CFR 10.38 and the surrounding temporary importation rules at 19 CFR 10.31 through 10.40 in the current eCFR text before relying on internal procedure documents written for an earlier version.

Key references

• 19 CFR 10.38 (eCFR): the exportation procedure for merchandise entered under a temporary importation bond, the rule CBP Form 3495 implements.
• 19 CFR part 10, including 19 CFR 10.31 through 10.40 (eCFR): the temporary importation conditions, eligibility, and bond requirement, including the exceptions 19 CFR 10.31 names to the bond generally set at double the estimated duties.
• Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (USITC): the official schedule, including the temporary importation provisions of heading 9813 under which these goods are entered.
• CBP forms page (cbp.gov): the official source for the current version and instructions of CBP Form 3495 and the related forms discussed above.