Section 1499 of title 19, United States Code, requires the US Customs Service to determine within five days (excluding weekends and holidays) whether merchandise presented for examination will be released or detained. Customs must issue a notice of detention no later than five days after the decision to detain merchandise. Customs must make a final determination on the admissibility of detained merchandise within 30 days of the date on which the merchandise was presented for examination. Failure to decide within that period is treated as a decision to exclude the merchandise, against which the importer may file a protest.
