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Duties, tariffs and fees

Harbor Maintenance Fee (HMF)

The harbor maintenance fee (HMF) is 0.125 percent of the value of commercial cargo that a vessel loads or unloads at a covered U.S. port.

What does Harbor Maintenance Fee (HMF) mean?

The fee applies at the ports that 19 CFR 24.24 defines, to commercial cargo loaded on or unloaded from a commercial vessel. Some cargo is exempt, for example bunker fuel and ship's stores.

The fee applies to vessel cargo only. A shipment that arrives by air does not pay it.

On the entry summary, the HMF uses fee code 501. If an HMF of $3 or less is the only payment due on an entry summary, CBP does not collect it.

What does it mean for your shipment?

For ocean shipments, add the HMF to your landed cost with the duty and the MPF. The HMF has no maximum, so it grows with the value of the cargo.

Allied CHB, licensed customs broker, CBP filer code 9AJ.

Where does this come from?

Read more on this site

All glossary terms · General information, not legal advice.

Not sure how this applies to your shipment?

A licensed customs broker explains it for your goods, your port and your deadline.

Call (908) 291-8001 or email info@alliedchb.com