Preclearance of air travelers in a foreign country; reimbursable cost.
19 C.F.R. § 24.18
in effectEffective: 2024-07-01(a) Preclearance is the tentative examination and inspection of air travelers and their baggage at foreign places where U.S. Customs personnel are stationed for that purpose.
(b) At the request of an airline, travelers on a direct flight to the United States from a foreign place described in paragraph (a) of this section may be precleared prior to departure from such place. A charge based on the excess cost to Customs of providing preclearance services as defined in paragraph (c) of this section shall be made to the airline.
(c) The reimbursable excess cost is the difference between the cost of examining and inspecting air travelers and their baggage upon arrival in the United States assuming no preclearance was provided, and the cost of providing preclearance for air travelers at the place of departure. Such excess cost shall include all items attributable to the preclearance operation. This does not include the salary of personnel regularly assigned to a preclearance station other than approved salary differentials related to the foreign assignment and the salary of relief details made necessary by reason of the nature of the operation. In addition, such cost shall include the following allowances and expenses:
(1) Housing allowances;
(2) Post of duty allowances;
(3) Education allowances;
(4) Transportation cost incident to the assignment to the foreign station and return, including transportation of family and household effects;
(5) Home leave and associated transportation costs; and
(6) Equipment, supplies and administrative costs including costs of supervising the preclearance installation.
(d) The reimbursable excess cost described in paragraph (c) of this section shall be determined for each preclearance installation. On the basis of the excess cost figure for each installation, the excess cost of providing preclearance service for a biweekly pay period shall be determined. The initial schedule of biweekly excess cost will be based on the actual excess cost for fiscal year 1969. Thereafter, a quarterly (ending with the pay period closely corresponding to June 30, September 30, December 31, and March 31) cost analysis will be conducted and the schedule of biweekly excess costs will be adjusted so that the current biweekly excess cost schedule will reflect the actual excess costs of the previous quarter. Such schedules of biweekly costs for each installation shall be published in the Federal Register. The biweekly excess cost in effect at an installation at the time the charge is made shall be used in calculating the prorated charge for preclearance service for each airline in accordance with paragraph (e) of this section.
(e) The charge to each airline for preclearance service shall be its prorated share of the applicable excess cost prorated to the aircraft receiving such services during the billing period on the following basis:
(1) Five percent shall be distributed equally among the airlines serviced.
(2) Ten percent shall be distributed proportionately as the number of clearances serviced bears to the total number of clearances.
(3) Eighty-five percent shall be distributed proportionately as the number of passengers and/or crew serviced for each airline bears to the total number of passengers and/or crew serviced.
(f) Customs services for which overtime compensation is provided for by section 5 of the Act of February 13, 1911, as amended (19 U.S.C. 267), and the expenses recovered thereunder are governed by § 24.16 and are in no way affected by this section. (63 Stat. 290; 31 U.S.C. 483a)
Source: eCFRURL: https://www.ecfr.gov/api/versioner/v1/full/2024-07-01/title-19.xmlFetched: 7/26/2026