The most common causes of customs clearance delays, and how to avoid them
16 Jun 2026 · Eagle Express Wave Team, Customs & Compliance
When a shipment gets held at customs, the cause is very rarely the cargo itself. It's almost always documentation: a missing commercial invoice, an incorrect tariff classification, or a mismatch between the paperwork and what's actually in the container.
Incomplete or inaccurate declarations are the single biggest driver of delays. Every field on a customs declaration (value, origin, classification code) needs to match the shipment exactly, because discrepancies trigger manual review.
Missing licences or certificates for regulated goods (food, pharmaceuticals, chemicals) is the second most common cause. These need to be arranged well before the shipment departs, not after it arrives at the border.
The fix is preparation, not luck: get documentation reviewed before departure, classify goods correctly the first time, and work with someone who clears the same lanes regularly and knows what each customs authority actually checks for.