MPF and HMF Fees in 2026: Rates, Minimums, Maximums and Examples

2026-11-12

Duty usually gets all the attention, but almost every formal entry also pays the Merchandise Processing Fee (MPF), and ocean shipments pay the Harbor Maintenance Fee (HMF) too. The fees are small next to a Section 301 or 232 duty. They're also exact, and they change every October 1, so stale figures produce wrong totals.

Here are the official numbers, where they come from, and how I calculate them. DutyCite's calculator does the same and cites the regulation and Federal Register notice next to each fee.

Disclaimer: This post is general information. It isn't customs brokerage, legal advice or a binding classification. If you need a binding classification, use a CBP ruling or a licensed customs broker.

One thing first: "2026" covers two fiscal years

CBP adjusts the MPF minimum and maximum each federal fiscal year, which starts October 1. So calendar 2026 includes:

Merchandise Processing Fee (MPF)

Rate: formally entered merchandise "is subject to the payment to CBP of an ad valorem fee of 0.3464 percent," based on the value of the merchandise (19 CFR 24.23). The FY2027 notice confirms "the ad valorem rate of 0.3464 percent remains the same" (Federal Register).

Minimum and maximum (formal entries):

Fiscal year Applies to entries Minimum Maximum Source
FY2026 Oct 1, 2025 – Sep 30, 2026 $33.58 $651.50 90 FR 34665 (3)
FY2027 (current) from Oct 1, 2026 $34.58 $670.86 91 FR 48398 (2)

By my arithmetic, under FY2027 the minimum applies to entries valued below about $9,983 (34.58 ÷ 0.003464) and the maximum to entries above about $193,666 (670.86 ÷ 0.003464). Those break-even values are my calculations, not CBP figures.

Other MPF amounts for FY2027 (2):

DutyCite's calculator doesn't calculate the manual-entry surcharge or the manual informal-entry fees. For informal entries it applies the automated $2.77 fee.

Common exemptions. 19 CFR 24.23(c) exempts, among others: most Chapter 98 articles; products of U.S. insular possessions; products of Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act beneficiary countries; products of least-developed beneficiary developing countries; and goods originating under the USMCA (1). Each exemption has conditions, so read the regulation for your case.

Harbor Maintenance Fee (HMF)

Commercial cargo "loaded on or unloaded from a commercial vessel is subject to a port use fee of 0.125 percent (.00125) of its value" if the loading or unloading happens at a covered port, unless an exemption or special rule applies (19 CFR 24.24). There's no minimum or maximum for HMF like the MPF has. Because it's a port-use fee, air and truck shipments don't pay it.

Worked examples (FY2027 figures, as of Nov 12, 2026)

All three are formal entries arriving by ocean, with no MPF exemption.

Entry value MPF at 0.3464% MPF charged HMF at 0.125% Fees total
$5,000 $17.32 $34.58 (minimum applies) $6.25 $40.83
$20,000 $69.28 $69.28 $25.00 $94.28
$250,000 $866.00 $670.86 (maximum applies) $312.50 $983.36

The same $20,000 entry by air would pay $69.28 MPF and no HMF.

A few practical notes:

How CBP sets the yearly numbers

The minimum and maximum aren't set by hand. Under 19 CFR 24.22, CBP checks each year whether inflation calls for an adjustment. For FY2027, it compared the average Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) for June 2025–May 2026 with the year before and found an increase of 2.84 percent. Because that's above the 1 percent trigger, the fees and limits had to be adjusted (Federal Register).

One oddity if you read the notice yourself: it describes the adjustment factor as 38.222 percent in one place and 38.322 percent in another. I'd rely on the dollar amounts in its tables ($34.58 and $670.86), which are the figures that apply. The 0.3464% rate didn't change, because "only the limitation is increasing."

Checking the fees on a broker's invoice

If you get a broker invoice or an entry summary and want to check the fee lines, I'd do this:

  1. Confirm the entry date and pick the fiscal year that applies.
  2. Multiply the entered value by 0.3464%, then clamp the result to that year's minimum and maximum.
  3. Check for an MPF exemption claim, such as USMCA-originating goods. If the goods qualify and none was claimed, ask about it.
  4. For ocean entries, multiply value by 0.125% for HMF. Air and truck entries shouldn't show HMF.
  5. Ask about any difference. Brokers sometimes show other charges (their own fees, the manual surcharge, informal entry fees) near these lines.

Where these fees show up in a full estimate

In my worked examples elsewhere, the fees are the last two lines:

How DutyCite handles fees

The calculator returns MPF and HMF as separate lines, each with an as-of date and its source, so you can see which year's figures were used. When CBP publishes the next fiscal year's figures, compare them with that as-of date. Developers get the same fields from the API (docs, pricing), and the HTS lookup handles the duty side.

Figures checked Nov 12, 2026 against the eCFR and the Federal Register. CBP updates these every fiscal year, so re-check before relying on them.

References

  1. eCFR, 19 CFR 24.23, Fees for processing merchandise. https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-19/chapter-I/part-24/section-24.23
  2. Federal Register, CBP, "Customs User Fees To Be Adjusted for Inflation in Fiscal Year 2027," 91 FR 48398 (Jul 31, 2026), FR Doc 2026-15530. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/07/31/2026-15530/customs-user-fees-to-be-adjusted-for-inflation-in-fiscal-year-2027
  3. Federal Register, CBP, "Customs User Fees To Be Adjusted for Inflation in Fiscal Year 2026" (CBP Dec. 25-10), 90 FR 34665 (Jul 23, 2025), FR Doc 2025-13869. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/07/23/2025-13869/customs-user-fees-to-be-adjusted-for-inflation-in-fiscal-year-2026-cbp-dec-25-10
  4. eCFR, 19 CFR 24.24, Harbor maintenance fee. https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-19/chapter-I/part-24/section-24.24