The Merchandise Processing Fee is one of the few CBP charges that a US importer can meaningfully lower without renegotiating freight, duty, or supplier terms. MPF is billed per formal entry, and CBP caps every formal entry at $634.62 in 2026. For importers who file two, five, or twenty entries a week out of the same US port of entry, the cap is the entire game: pay MPF on every shipment, or pay it once on a single weekly consolidated entry. The mechanism is called weekly entry consolidation, and it is the single largest MPF optimization available to high volume ocean and air importers.
This guide is written for freight forwarders, licensed customs brokers, and import operations teams handling US inbound freight. It covers how MPF is calculated in 2026, when weekly entry consolidation is allowed, how the mechanic works for both ocean and air imports, how much it actually saves at realistic weekly profiles, and how to set it up cleanly through a licensed broker without breaking release timelines.
MPF consolidation, also called weekly entry consolidation, is a CBP authorized entry pattern that lets a qualifying importer combine all shipments arriving at a single US port of entry from a single supplier in one calendar week into a single Type 03 formal entry summary. Because the Merchandise Processing Fee is charged per entry and capped at $634.62 per entry in 2026, consolidating multiple shipments into one entry caps the MPF for the entire week instead of charging it on every individual ocean or air shipment.
CBP collects the Merchandise Processing Fee on every formal entry of merchandise into the United States. The rate is set by statute at 0.3464 percent of the entered value of the goods, but the fee is bounded on both ends. The minimum and maximum are indexed for inflation each fiscal year and published in the Federal Register.
| MPF Parameter (2026) | Value |
|---|---|
| Ad valorem rate | 0.3464 percent of entered value |
| Minimum per formal entry | $31.67 |
| Maximum per formal entry (cap) | $634.62 |
| Value at which the cap kicks in | Approximately $183,205 entered value |
| Informal entry MPF (under $2,500) | $2.62 flat (manual) or $2.18 (automated), separate from the formal entry rate |
The cap is the entire reason consolidation works. Once a single entry crosses roughly $183,205 in entered value, every additional dollar on that entry is MPF free. The MPF on a $200,000 entry and the MPF on a $2,000,000 entry are both $634.62. Importers who can legally group qualifying shipments into the same entry pay one capped fee instead of many uncapped fees.
Ocean is where the largest MPF dollars sit. Programmatic ocean import lanes typically move high value containers from one factory or one nominated supplier into one US discharge port on a repeating cadence, which is exactly the structural fit for weekly entry. Apparel programs into Los Angeles, consumer electronics into New York/Newark, industrial components into Savannah, and furniture into Houston all routinely satisfy every consolidation condition without any operational change to booking, sailing, or release.
The mechanic on ocean import is that each container is still released through its normal CBP entry pattern so cargo moves the same day it clears, but the entry summary side pulls all qualifying releases from the week into a single Type 03 filing. The importer keeps the same broker, the same bond, the same PGA workflow, and the same release timing. Only the summary and the MPF assessment change.
For forwarders scaling a US ocean import book, consolidation is the highest leverage lever inside an Ocean Import Freight Management Software workflow because it turns per shipment MPF into a fixed weekly ceiling per qualifying lane without touching freight rates or duty classification.
Air imports carry the same 2026 MPF parameters as ocean: 0.3464 percent ad valorem, $31.67 minimum, $634.62 maximum per formal entry. Weekly entry consolidation is available on air the same way it is on ocean, and the case for it is strong even at lower shipment counts because air lanes tend to move higher value per kilogram cargo that hits the MPF cap more quickly per shipment.
A programmatic air import lane running three formal entries per week at $80,000 entered value each pays about $831 in MPF without consolidation and $634.62 with a single consolidated Type 03 entry, a weekly saving in the low three figures that compounds across dozens of qualifying lanes. Higher value electronics, semiconductor components, and time critical aerospace parts push individual entries closer to the cap on their own, which means fewer weekly shipments are needed to make consolidation worthwhile.
Forwarders running a US inbound air book manage the same qualification conditions inside their Air Import Freight Management Software workflow: same port of entry, same supplier or seller of record, same importer of record, same calendar week. The one operational nuance versus ocean is that air arrivals cluster more tightly around specific flight schedules, so the calendar week cutoff needs to be set with awareness of the weekend flight pattern into the discharge airport to avoid splitting a natural lane across two weekly entries.
Weekly entry consolidation is a long established CBP entry pattern in which a single Type 03 consumption entry, filed by a licensed customs broker, covers all qualifying shipments that arrive at the same US port of entry from the same supplier within one calendar week. The legal basis sits in the entry regulations at 19 CFR 142 and the periodic statement framework at 19 CFR 24. CBP treats the consolidated filing as a single formal entry for the purpose of every per entry charge, including MPF.
The mechanics on the broker side are straightforward.
The savings depend on weekly shipment count and average shipment value. The pattern is consistent: the higher the shipment count and the higher the average entered value, the bigger the gap between paying MPF on every shipment and paying it once on the consolidated weekly entry.
The table below shows the math for four representative weekly profiles. Two are ocean import shapes and two are air import shapes. Each row holds the average shipment value constant and walks the weekly shipment count up.
| Weekly Profile | MPF Without Consolidation | MPF With Weekly Entry | Weekly Savings | Annual Savings (52 wks) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air: 3 entries at $80,000 each | $831.36 (3 x $277.12) | $634.62 (single capped entry) | $196.74 | $10,230 |
| Ocean: 5 entries at $60,000 each | $1,039.20 (5 x $207.84) | $634.62 (single capped entry) | $404.58 | $21,038 |
| Air: 6 entries at $120,000 each | $2,494.08 (6 x $415.68) | $634.62 (single capped entry) | $1,859.46 | $96,692 |
| Ocean: 20 entries at $150,000 each | $10,392 (20 x $519.60) | $634.62 (single capped entry) | $9,757.38 | $507,384 |
Two patterns fall out of the math. First, the saving on a single capped entry is bounded by the MPF cap, so the break even on consolidation arrives quickly. Two formal entries per week from the same supplier into the same port of entry are almost always cheaper as one consolidated entry, whether they are ocean containers or air master waybills. Second, the saving scales with the number of shipments that would have hit the cap individually. High volume programmatic importers, especially in apparel, consumer goods, electronics, and industrial components, are the largest beneficiaries.
Weekly entry is available to any importer whose lane profile meets CBP's structural conditions. There is no formal application, but every shipment in the consolidated entry must satisfy each condition.
The list looks restrictive on paper, but in practice high frequency lanes from a single supplier into a single US port are exactly the lanes where consolidation pays the most. Forwarders running programmatic ocean container lanes from one factory, consolidated air freight from a single origin gateway, or recurring bulk material lanes routinely satisfy every condition without any change to how the freight physically moves.
For freight forwarders running customs filing in house or through a partner broker, the implementation is process work, not a new product. The work falls into five steps.
For forwarders running on GoFreight, the CBP Type 03 filing connection, message handling, and broker integration sit inside the platform's Freight Integrations Software for Forwarders. The MPF, duty, and HMF accruals on each consolidated entry flow into Freight Billing & Accounting Software for Forwarders, so the avoided fee shows up in the customer P and L on the same statement that reports the freight charges.
MPF is one line in a longer customs cost stack that also includes duty, the Harbor Maintenance Fee on ocean cargo, broker fees, and any applicable special program tariffs. Consolidation reduces MPF and broker entry counts, but it does not change duty rates, HMF rates, or the underlying classification work. Importers and forwarders looking at landed cost optimization usually pair MPF consolidation with classification reviews, free trade agreement claims, and bond right sizing. For the full picture of how MPF fits inside the broader customs cost stack, see our walkthrough of customs duty and import tax and the timing and payment view in our US customs clearance process guide.
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Request a GoFreight Demo →MPF consolidation, also called weekly entry consolidation, is a CBP authorized entry pattern that lets a qualifying importer combine all shipments arriving at one US port of entry from one supplier within one calendar week into a single Type 03 formal entry. The Merchandise Processing Fee is charged once on the consolidated entry and capped at the MPF maximum, instead of being charged on every individual ocean or air shipment.
MPF is 0.3464 percent of the entered value of each formal entry. In 2026 the minimum is $31.67 per entry and the maximum is $634.62 per entry. The cap kicks in at roughly $183,205 of entered value, so any entered value above that threshold is effectively MPF free on the same entry.
The 2026 MPF cap is $634.62 per formal entry. CBP raised it from the 2025 cap of $614.35 as part of the annual inflation adjustment published in the Federal Register. The minimum was raised in the same notice to $31.67 per entry.
Yes. MPF is charged per formal entry regardless of mode. The 0.3464 percent rate, the $31.67 minimum, and the $634.62 maximum apply to formal entries of air imports and ocean imports on the same terms. Weekly entry consolidation is available on both modes as long as every shipment in the entry meets the same port, same supplier, same IOR, and same calendar week conditions.
Any importer whose shipments arrive at the same US port of entry, clear to the same importer of record, originate from the same supplier, and fall within the same calendar week. The shipments must be formal entries, and the duty and Partner Government Agency profile must be compatible on a single entry summary. There is no application process, but every shipment in the consolidated entry must satisfy the structural conditions.
Savings depend on weekly shipment count and average entered value. A programmatic ocean import lane filing five formal entries per week at $60,000 each saves about $400 per week, or roughly $21,000 per year. A high volume ocean lane filing twenty entries per week at $150,000 each saves about $9,750 per week, or roughly $507,000 per year. A typical air import lane of three weekly entries at $80,000 each saves around $200 per week, or about $10,000 per year, and scales up from there.
No. Weekly entry consolidation and Periodic Monthly Statement are separate programs. Consolidation reduces the number of formal entries; PMS changes how duties, MPF, and HMF are paid on those entries. Importers can use weekly entry consolidation with or without PMS, although many high volume importers run both because the operational rhythms align.
No. CBP requires all shipments on a consolidated weekly entry to originate from the same supplier or seller. A shared parent company is not enough if the supplier of record differs. Shipments from different suppliers must be filed on separate entries, and each separate entry pays its own MPF up to the cap.
No. Duty is calculated on the entered value of each line, regardless of whether the entry is consolidated. Consolidation reduces per entry fees like MPF and broker entry counts, but it does not change classification, duty rates, special program eligibility, or HMF.
A licensed customs broker files the consolidated entry summary on behalf of the importer of record. The broker is responsible for confirming the structural conditions are met, filing the CBP Form 7501 entry summary as a Type 03 consumption entry, and reconciling the consolidated values against the underlying house bills before submission.