What's the difference between a continuous and single-entry customs bond?

A continuous bond covers all your shipments for 12 months at any U.S. port and auto-renews annually. A single-entry bond covers one specific entry at one specific port. Continuous bonds cost $400–$700/year for the $50,000 minimum and make sense for importers with 3+ shipments/year. Single-entry bonds cost $50–$150 per shipment and make sense for occasional or one-off imports.

How much does a continuous customs bond cost in 2026?

For the standard $50,000 minimum continuous bond, surety premiums in 2026 typically run $400–$700/year, plus $50–$200 in broker administration fees — totaling $450–$900/year. Larger bonds scale roughly proportionally; a $200,000 bond runs $1,500–$2,500/year. Importers with clean compliance history and longer surety relationships pay at the lower end.

How much does a single-entry customs bond cost?

Single-entry bond premiums are typically $5 per $1,000 of bond amount, with a $30–$50 minimum charge depending on surety. Practical ranges: $50–$75 per entry for low-duty shipments, $100–$150 for mid-duty entries, and $750+ for high-AD/CVD shipments where the bond must cover 3× the entered value. Add broker filing fees and you're usually $100–$250 all-in per shipment.

What is the 10% rule for customs bonds?

CBP requires that a continuous bond be sized to at least 10% of the total duties, taxes, and fees the importer paid in the prior 12 months, with a $50,000 minimum floor. So an importer who paid $400,000 in duties last year needs a $50,000 bond (the floor); $700,000 in duties requires a $100,000 bond; $5 million requires a $500,000 bond.

How many shipments per year is the break-even between continuous and single-entry?

Around 3 shipments per year. Continuous bond annual cost (~$500) divided by typical single-entry cost (~$150) equals 3.3 shipments. If you import 3 or more times in 12 months, continuous is both cheaper and lower administrative overhead. If you import once or twice, single-entry may be the right call — particularly if you don't want a recurring annual commitment.

Will Section 232 changes force me to resize my bond?

Quite possibly. The April 6, 2026 Section 232 derivative restructure pushed many importers' annual duty bills above the threshold that requires a bigger continuous bond. If your trailing 12-month duty payments cross from $500,000 because of the derivative rule, CBP will issue a bond insufficiency notice and your $50,000 bond must be increased to $100,000. Run the math now — by the time the insufficiency notice arrives, your entries are already getting delayed.

Can I buy a customs bond directly without a broker?

Yes. You can buy directly from a CBP-approved surety company (Roanoke, Avalon, Liberty Surety, International Bond & Marine, etc.) or through online marketplaces. Direct purchase typically saves 10–20% on premium versus buying through a broker, but you take on responsibility for compliance issues yourself. For most SMBs, buying through a customs broker is worth the small premium for the bundled compliance support.

Are customs bonds state-specific?

No. Customs bonds are federal instruments — a single bond filed with CBP covers you at every U.S. port. There is no separate Texas, California, or New York customs bond. The surety company writing your bond must be licensed in states where you do business, but major customs sureties are licensed nationally. Broker location can affect filing speed and after-hours support but does not affect bond coverage.

Continuous vs. Single-Entry Customs Bond: Which One Should You Buy in 2026?

If you import goods into the United States, you need a customs bond. The interesting question isn't whether — it's which type: a continuous bond that covers all your shipments for a year, or a single-entry bond that covers one shipment at a time.

Most online guidance defaults to "buy continuous, it's cheaper." That's right for the average importer — and wrong for a meaningful minority. This is the actual decision guide: when single-entry is the right call, what continuous costs in 2026, how the 10% bond floor works, and what changes once Section 232 derivative duties hit your invoice.

TL;DR: If you import more than 3–4 times per year, or if a single shipment will exceed $10,000 in duties/fees, get a continuous bond. If you import once or twice a year and your duty bill is small, single-entry is fine. The break-even is usually 3 shipments per year.

What each bond actually does

Both bonds are surety instruments. They guarantee that if you fail to pay duties, taxes, or fees CBP says you owe — or fail to comply with import regulations — the surety company pays CBP and then comes after you to collect. They are not insurance for you. They are insurance for CBP.

	Continuous bond	Single-entry bond
Coverage period	12 months, auto-renewing	One specific entry
Geographic scope	All U.S. ports of entry	The port named on the entry
Best for	Regular importers (3+ shipments/yr)	Occasional importers; one-off shipments
Bond amount	10% of total duties/taxes/fees paid in prior 12 months, $50,000 minimum	Equal to total entered value + duties/taxes/fees (or 3× value for restricted goods)
Typical 2026 cost	$400–$700/year for a $50,000 bond	$50–$100 per entry (plus broker fees)

The decision tree

When to buy a continuous bond

You will import 3 or more times in the next 12 months
A single entry will trigger more than $10,000 in duties, taxes, and fees (the threshold above which CBP requires a bond on formal entries)
You ship from multiple ports, or your port-of-entry can change shipment-to-shipment
You pay any of: anti-dumping/countervailing duties (AD/CVD), Section 301, Section 232, or the new April 2026 Section 232 derivative duties
You want to use periodic monthly statement (PMS) payment for duties — PMS requires continuous

When single-entry still makes sense

You import once or twice a year, and the total duties on each entry are modest
You're testing a new product or supplier with a one-off trial shipment
You're a U.S. exporter receiving a one-time return shipment (TIB or warranty return)
Your shipment is at a port you'll never use again
You're moving an FTZ admission or a one-off bonded warehouse withdrawal

Edge cases where single-entry actually wins

The shipment value is small but the AD/CVD rate is high (e.g., 200%+) — a continuous bond won't be sized to cover that exposure, and CBP will require a single-entry bond on top anyway. If you only have one such shipment, skip the continuous bond.
You're a first-time importer doing one trial shipment to validate an HS code classification before committing to recurring imports
Your freight forwarder is providing the bond as part of a turnkey service for a single high-value entry (e.g., trade show goods)

The 2026 cost math, plainly

Continuous bond pricing

The price you pay your surety company is a small fraction of the bond amount, not the bond amount itself. The bond amount is what CBP can claim against; the premium is what you actually pay annually.

For a standard $50,000 continuous bond (the minimum):

Surety premium: $400–$700/year, depending on your importer history and broker relationship
Broker administration fee: $50–$200/year
Total cash out: $450–$900/year

For a larger bond — say $200,000 because your prior-year duties were $2 million — the premium scales roughly proportionally, with discounts for clean compliance history.

Single-entry bond pricing

Single-entry bond premiums are typically $5 per $1,000 of bond amount, with a minimum charge that varies by surety. Practical 2026 ranges:

Low-duty shipment ($5,000 entered value, low duty rate): $50–$75 per entry
Mid-duty shipment ($25,000 entered value, 25% duty): $100–$150 per entry
High-AD/CVD shipment ($50,000 entered value, 250% AD/CVD): $750+ per entry

Add broker filing fees and you are usually $100–$250 all-in per single-entry bond shipment.

The break-even

Continuous bond cost (annual)        $500
Single-entry cost per shipment       $150
Break-even:  $500 / $150  =  ~3.3 shipments per year

If you import 3 or more times per year, continuous is cheaper and less administrative overhead. If you import 1–2 times, single-entry may still be the right call — particularly if you don't want to commit to a recurring annual premium.

How the 10% bond formula actually works

CBP requires that a continuous bond be sized to at least 10% of the total duties, taxes, and fees the importer paid in the prior 12 months, with a $50,000 minimum.

The math:

Prior-year duties paid	Required bond amount
$0 – $500,000	$50,000 (the floor)
$500,001 – $1,000,000	$100,000
$1,000,001 – $2,000,000	$200,000
$5,000,000	$500,000
$20,000,000	$2,000,000

CBP sizes bonds in $10,000 increments below $100,000, $100,000 increments between $100,000 and $1,000,000, and $1 million increments above that.

What triggers a re-sizing

A jump in your annual duty payments (typical: Section 232/301 added new duties to existing imports)
A bond insufficiency notice from CBP — issued when your trailing 12-month duties exceed your current bond's 10% threshold
A new high-duty product line (especially AD/CVD goods)
Late or missed duty payments — CBP can demand a higher bond as a compliance condition

💡 Tariff-era reality check: Importers with 2025 duty bills of, say, $300,000 ran fine on the $50,000 floor. Add Section 232 derivatives effective April 6, 2026, and that same importer's duty bill jumps to $700,000 — pushing them above the floor and into a $100,000 bond. Most bond insufficiency notices in 2026 will be tariff-driven, not volume-driven. Run the math on your trailing 12 now.

State filing variations and port logistics

A common confusion: customs bonds are federal instruments — there is no such thing as a "customs bond Texas" or a "customs bond California" in the legal sense. You file with the surety company; they file with CBP; CBP recognizes the bond at every U.S. port.

That said, there are legitimate state and city-specific surety realities:

State surety licensing: the surety company writing your bond must be licensed in any state where you might do business. Major customs sureties are licensed nationally; some smaller ones aren't.
Broker location: your customs broker's physical location can affect filing speed and after-hours support, but does not affect bond coverage.
High-volume ports (Los Angeles, Long Beach, Houston, Newark): more brokers compete on price; you'll find better quotes.
CES/exam fees: not bond-related, but often confused — these are charged when CBP holds your container for inspection at a Centralized Examination Station. Both bond types cover you for the duty exposure during the exam, but neither pays the exam fee itself.

Buying logistics: surety, broker, or self-file?

Three paths to actually purchasing:

Through your customs broker (most common). Your broker has a relationship with one or more surety companies and bundles the bond with brokerage. Easiest path; sometimes higher cost.
Direct from a surety company (Roanoke, Avalon, International Bond & Marine, Liberty Surety, etc.). You may save 10–20% on premium but you're responsible for any compliance issues yourself.
Through an online bond marketplace. Faster pricing comparison; quality varies. Confirm the underlying surety is a CBP-approved company before signing.

For a continuous bond, expect 1–3 business days from quote to active CBP filing. For a single-entry bond on an urgent shipment, same-day issuance is typical if you commit by mid-afternoon Eastern.

Common mistakes importers make in 2026

Mistake 1 — Buying continuous before they need it

If you have one trial shipment from a new supplier, single-entry is correct. Buying a continuous bond "just in case" wastes premium if the shipment doesn't pan out and you don't import again for 18 months.

Mistake 2 — Sticking with the $50,000 minimum after Section 232 hit

The April 2026 Section 232 derivative restructure pushed many importers' annual duty bills past the threshold that requires a bigger bond. CBP will issue an insufficiency notice — but by the time it arrives, you've already had entries delayed at the port. Audit your trailing 12 months of duties, taxes, and fees this quarter.

Mistake 3 — Not coordinating bond renewal with broker change

If you switch customs brokers mid-year, your continuous bond stays in your name but the broker's filing authority needs to be updated with the surety. Failure to do this leads to entry-rejection at the port. Time the broker change to bond renewal whenever possible.

Mistake 4 — Confusing the bond amount with the premium

The bond amount is what CBP can recover against. The premium is what you pay. A $50,000 bond does not cost $50,000. We see this misread monthly in support tickets.

Where TariffCenter can help

Duty Calculator — calculate your trailing 12-month duty exposure to size your continuous bond correctly
Refund Estimator — model how IEEPA refunds reduce your historical duty base (which can resize a continuous bond downward at renewal)
US Customs Bonds Explained — the broader bonds primer, covering all bond types (continuous, single-entry, drawback, FTZ, ISF)
Section 232 Derivative Decision Guide — figure out whether your products have triggered a bond resize
AI Tariff Assistant — ask "should I buy a continuous bond?" with your specific duty volume and get a tailored answer

Bottom line

The continuous-vs-single-entry decision is not religious. It's arithmetic. Three or more shipments per year, or any shipment over the $10,000 formal-entry threshold? Continuous. One or two shipments per year with low duty exposure? Single-entry. And in 2026, the variable that moves the most importers from "single-entry is fine" to "I need continuous" is Section 232 derivative duties, not shipment count.

Run the math on your trailing 12 months. If your duty bill jumped after April 6, 2026, your bond probably needs to be resized — before CBP tells you so.