Couple facing CBP trusted traveler status revocation after failing to declare nearly $100,000 in designer goods

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials said a Maryland couple faces CBP trusted traveler status revocation after failing to declare nearly $100,000 in designer brand consumer goods purchased overseas.

Both individuals were Global Entry trusted traveler members. Global Entry is the agency’s Trusted Traveler Program enabling expedited clearance for pre-approved, low-risk travelers upon arrival in the United States.

Per the CBP, amid Global Entry’s goal of providing pre-vetted, trusted travelers with an expedited entry process, members may still be randomly selected for further examination.

According to the CPB, after arriving from Paris, France, the couple processed their admission at a Global Entry kiosk and encountered a CBP officer who asked them what they had purchased during their trip. The couple noted they had nothing to declare.

The CBP officer then asked about their Chanel bag and declared they possessed between $300 and $900 in merchandise. The couple was referred to a secondary examination, where CBP officers provided the couple numerous opportunities to be truthful, officials noted.

The CBP said the couple repeatedly revised their amount of merchandise, and officers initiated a baggage examination, with CBP officers at Washington Dulles International Airport revoking the Global Entry trusted traveler privileges from the couple on Aug. 14, 2022. They repeatedly failed to truthfully declare nearly $100,000 in merchandise that they purchased overseas.

“Customs and Border Protection places a significant measure of trust in Global Entry members, and trusted traveler status cannot be used as a license to deliberately violate our nation’s laws,” CBP’s Area Port Director for the Area Port of Washington, D.C. Daniel Escobedo said.