WASHINGTON: US Customs and Border Protection announced the open period for accepting letters of application through the Section 559 Reimbursable Services Program. Applications may be submitted via email to [email protected] until 5 p.m. EDT on March 31.
Pursuant to Section 559 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014, CBP is authorized to enter into partnerships with private sector and government entities to provide new or expanded services on a reimbursable basis. Reimbursable services include customs and agricultural processing, border security, and immigration inspection-related matters at ports of entry. Associated costs may include the salaries of additional staff, overtime hours, administration, and transportation expenses. For CBP-serviced airports, Section 559 imposes a limit of five agreements per year, and limits reimbursement to overtime payments only.
Letters of application will be evaluated based on their individual merit and ability to satisfy the evaluation criteria posted on CBP.gov. Applicants and interested parties may submit questions regarding the Reimbursable Services Program via email at [email protected].
The Reimbursable Services Program is a key component of CBP’s Resource Optimization Strategy. The program enables CBP to support additional requests for services while also managing rising volumes of travel and trade that are critical to our economy. In the first year, CBP was able to provide more than 60,000 additional processing hours at primary lanes and booths, which contributed to both increased border throughput and decreased border wait times.
