Parcel held at US customs: what the texts say
For a product CPSC regulates, missing information is not read as an exemption.
Updated 11 October 2026
What the texts say
Since 8 July 2026, CPSC has required certificates of compliance to be filed electronically before import for regulated consumer products.
Official text
Depuis le 8 juillet 2026, la Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) impose le dépôt électronique préalable des certificats de conformité pour les produits de consommation importés soumis à une norme de sécurité
— Direction générale des douanes et droits indirects, retrieved 11 October 2026
Colissimo writes that missing information is read as missing data, not as an exemption, which can lead to the parcel being held, put on hold, or information being requested.
Official text
L'absence d'information est interprétée comme une donnée manquante, et non comme une exemption
— Colissimo Entreprise, retrieved 11 October 2026un blocage, une mise en attente, ou une demande d'informations complémentaires
— Colissimo Entreprise, retrieved 11 October 2026
Without a compliant eFiling declaration, parcels can be held at customs, and the US authorities can charge storage of 0.08 USD per kilogram per working day beyond 5 days.
Official text
en l'absence de déclaration eFiling conforme, vos envois concernés pourront être bloqués en douane
— Colissimo Entreprise, retrieved 11 October 2026Des frais de stockage pourront alors être appliqués par les autorités américaines, à hauteur de 0,08 USD par kilogramme et par jour ouvrable de stockage au-delà de 5 jours de stockage
— Colissimo Entreprise, retrieved 11 October 2026
Each parcel needs a CPSC annex in the postage tool, with commercial descriptions in English.
Official text
Il est nécessaire de charger un formulaire annexe CPSC par colis dans votre outil d'affranchissement au moment de la préparation de votre envoi.
— Colissimo Entreprise, retrieved 11 October 2026Les descriptions commerciales doivent impérativement être renseignées en anglais.
— Direction générale des douanes et droits indirects, retrieved 11 October 2026
For a product CPSC does not regulate, or for which data is not required, the annex carries a Disclaim: a Disclaimer Code A or B, an intended use code and its description.
Official text
un code de non-applicabilité (Disclaimer Code A ou B) , un code d'usage prévu (Intended Use Code) et une description de l'usage prévu (Intended Use Code Description)
— Colissimo Entreprise, retrieved 11 October 2026Disclaim A: product is not regulated by this agency
— CPSC, retrieved 11 October 2026Disclaim B: data is not required per agency guidance
— CPSC, retrieved 11 October 2026
From 22 October 2026, CPSC requires eFiled certificates for mail shipments.
Official text
CPSC will require eFiled certificates for mail shipments, via a Full or Reference Message Set, beginning on October 22, 2026.
— CPSC, retrieved 11 October 2026
Why a parcel is held rather than returned
A hold is not a refusal. It means the entry is incomplete or has been selected for a look, and that the goods wait while that is resolved - which is worse than a return in one specific way: waiting is charged.
« In the absence of a compliant eFiling declaration, the shipments concerned may be held at customs »« Storage fees may then be applied by the US authorities, at 0.08 USD per kilogram and per working day of storage beyond five days of storage »Which is why an unresolved parcel gets more expensive rather than simply later, and why the useful reflex is to fix the data rather than to wait and see.
It also explains why a hold is often invisible at first. Nothing is returned, no message arrives from an agency, and the tracking simply stops moving - so the first sign is usually the buyer asking where the parcel is, several days after the clock started.
What is usually missing
In the cases we see, it is rarely the certificate itself. It is the data around it: a description written in French, a tracking number entered where the form asks for none, an annex attached to the order rather than to each parcel, or a product that was never recorded so the shipment had to carry seven elements it did not have.
« Commercial descriptions must be given in English. »« Seven data elements are required for each shipment concerned if you choose not to register your products in the CPSC Product Registry »None of that is a judgement about your product. It is a form that was filled the way a French shipping form is usually filled, for a reader who is not French.
What to do with the parcel that is stuck
Start by producing the data properly for that product, because whatever happens to this parcel, the next one needs it. CPSC has said it does not intend to have entry denied on the sole ground that certificate data was not filed at this stage - but it also says it continues to enforce the certificate requirement itself.
« At this time, CPSC does not intend to request that CBP deny entry of products into the U.S. solely based on failure to eFile certificate data via a Full PGA Message Set or a Reference PGA Message Set. »« CPSC will continue to enforce certificate requirements for imported consumer products and submit requests to CBP to initiate seizure of non-compliant products. »Then tell your buyer what is happening, in plain terms and with a date. A held parcel that is explained is a delayed order; a held parcel that goes silent is a refund and a review, and the second costs far more than the storage.
And record what you find, parcel by parcel, even if it feels like bureaucracy in the middle of a problem. Two held parcels with the same cause are a pattern you can fix once; two held parcels with no notes are the same investigation twice.
Is your product concerned?
Two minutes, no account.
Frequently asked questions
What should I check on my annex?
Colissimo's instructions: leave the Tracking Number empty, write the Commercial Description in English, and give the seller-exporter's details under the table; for registered products, the three Registry identifiers.
Who can answer about eFiling?
CPSC gives the address of its eFiling support on its Product Registry page: eFilingSupport@cpsc.gov.
Sources
- Direction générale des douanes et droits indirects, Formalités douanières à l'importation aux États-Unis · retrieved 11 October 2026
- Colissimo Entreprise, Export vers les USA : les formalités douanières et réglementaires à anticiper · retrieved 11 October 2026
- CPSC, eFiling Citation, Testing Exclusion and Disclaim Guidance · retrieved 11 October 2026
- CPSC, CPSC Guidance for Mail Shipments on Electronic Filing (eFiling) of Certificates of Compliance · retrieved 11 October 2026
- CPSC, CPSC Product Registry · retrieved 11 October 2026
- CPSC, eFiling Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) · retrieved 11 October 2026