Brokerage and forwarding
Customs brokers: records AI developers may want to license
Customs brokers prepare and file entries and declarations for their clients, and keep the records behind each one. Classification is already a live area for AI tools in customs. In the US, customs brokers keep their records for at least five years after the date of entry (19 CFR 111.23).
Records a customs broker may hold
Usually yours to decide on
These can still contain other parties' details: see Held for others.
- Internal proceduresProcedures and templates written by your team that contain no client information. Even these are worth checking against your client terms.
Held for others
These may need the other party's consent, or may have to come out before anything is shared.
- Entries and declarationsThe entries you filed, with their supporting documents.
- Classification and valuation workThe decisions you made for each client's goods.
- Powers of attorney and correspondenceClient authorities and your correspondence with clients and customs authorities.
What a customs broker should check before saying yes
Written client authorization
In the US, a customs broker can share client records with a licensing firm only with the client's written authorization (19 CFR 111.24). Removing client names may not be enough on its own.
Client terms
Where that rule doesn't apply, client contracts and duties of confidence may still limit what can be shared.
How personal details come out
Ask the firm how names, contact details and identification numbers are removed before anything is shared. De-identification explained sets out what to ask.
The terms of any offer
Read what you would be agreeing to, and get your own legal advice before you sign. Once data is used to train a model, it can't practically be pulled back out.
How it works
Fill in a short form and we reply by email within two business days. If it looks like a fit, we introduce you to a firm that represents owners in these deals and email you its name. The firm pays us a referral fee if you sign. See all three steps.
Check if your data qualifies
One short form. If it looks like a fit, we introduce you to a firm that represents owners in these deals. No cost, and nothing is shared without your OK.
Check if my data qualifies →Questions owners ask
Can I share client entries if I remove names?
In the US, not without the client's written authorization. A customs broker can share client records with a licensing firm only with the client's written authorization (19 CFR 111.24), and removing client names may not be enough on its own.
Do I need to sort out my records first?
No. Start by filling in our short form with your team size and years in business. Rough numbers are fine. If you are about to cancel or switch software, export your records first: see Before you cancel or switch logistics software.
Do I have to pay anything?
No. If you sign with the firm we introduce you to, it pays us a referral fee out of its own share, so it doesn't reduce what your company is paid. You never pay Insightlanes.com anything.
Sources
- 19 CFR 111.23: records kept five years
- 19 CFR 111.24: client's written authorization