April 2023 — Question 7
Which statement correctly identifies the timeframe within which CBP will notify the importer in writing of a detention of merchandise when CBP suspects the merchandise bears a counterfeit version of a mark that is registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and is recorded with CBP?
- AFive (5) business days from the date the decision is made to detain.✓ CBP's answer
- BFive (5) calendar days from the date the decision is made to detain.
- CSeven (7) business days from the date the merchandise is presented for examination.
- DSeven (7) business days from the date of the oral notification to the broker of the detention.
- EThirty (30) calendar days from the date on which the merchandise is presented for examination.
Why this answer
The counterfeit-mark detention rule at 133.21(b) provides that when CBP detains merchandise suspected of bearing a counterfeit version of a mark registered with the Patent and Trademark Office and recorded with CBP, it must notify the importer in writing within five business days from the date of the decision to detain. That keys option A and defeats option B, which swaps in calendar days. Option E is the strongest distractor because a thirty-day period measured from presentation for examination also appears in 133.21, but it caps the length of the detention itself, not the deadline for notifying the importer. Watch for: Confusing the 30-day detention period with the 5-business-day written notice deadline.
Original CBLE Simulator explanation — the question and key above are CBP's; this analysis is ours. Verify against the current edition before relying on it in practice.
CBP's cited authority
Answer and citations as published in CBP's official answer key for the April 2023 examination.
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