Custom House Agent (CHA)

A custom house agent (CHA) is the name Indian traders still use for a customs broker: a licensed agent who handles customs clearance at a port, airport or ICD for importers and exporters. The licensing rules were the Customs House Agents Licensing Regulations of 1984 and 2004, then the Customs Brokers Licensing Regulations of 2013. Those were superseded by the Customs Brokers Licensing Regulations, 2018 (CBLR), issued by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs as Notification No. 41/2018-Customs (N.T.) of 14 May 2018 under section 146 of the Customs Act, 1962.

What the law says

• Definition: under CBLR regulation 2(d), a customs broker is a person licensed to act as agent for an importer or exporter in any business relating to the entry or departure of conveyances or the import or export of goods at a customs station
• Licence required: section 146 of the Act and regulation 3 bar anyone from doing that business without a licence. Under regulation 3, an importer or exporter acting solely on its own account does not need one
• Exam: applicants must pass an online written examination, now conducted by the National Academy of Customs, Indirect Taxes and Narcotics (NACIN), and then an oral examination under regulation 6
• Validity: since Notification No. 62/2021-Customs (N.T.) of 23 July 2021, a licence stays valid until it is revoked or surrendered, but it is deemed invalid if the broker has been inactive for a year
• Staff: employees who have passed the examination hold a G card, and other approved employees hold an H card

What a CHA does

• Exports: prepares and files the shipping bill on ICEGATE, follows it through assessment and examination, and obtains the let export order
• Imports: files the bill of entry, arranges duty payment and examination, and gets the goods out of charge
• Classifies the goods, checks licences and permits, and deals with Customs at the port, airport or ICD

A CHA's obligations under regulation 10

• Hold an authorisation from each client and produce it when Customs asks
• Advise clients to comply with the law, and report non-compliance to Customs
• Take due care over the accuracy of the information it gives clients about clearance
• Verify the client's IEC, GSTIN, identity and working address using reliable, independent documents
• Pay duty received from a client over to the government promptly
• Keep records such as bills of entry and shipping bills for at least five years

CHA vs US customs broker

The roles match. A US customs broker is licensed by CBP under 19 CFR part 111 and, under 19 CFR 111.2, must hold that licence to transact customs business for others. A CHA is licensed by Indian Customs under the CBLR. Neither licence is valid in the other country, so a shipment between India and the US needs a broker at each end, unless the importer or exporter files for itself.

How Airlift works with CHAs

Airlift is an FMC-licensed NVOCC. It is not a licensed customs broker or CHA, in the United States or in India, and it does not file shipping bills or bills of entry. On India to US shipments the exporter's licensed CHA clears the goods in India. In the US, Airlift coordinates the entry through licensed brokers via its customs clearance service.