The Office of Trade Relations (OTR) serves as the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) point of contact for the international trade community. Situated within the Office of the Commissioner, OTR is responsible for industry engagement, dissemination of information, and solicitation of input from both the trade and partner government agencies (PGAs).
The private sector plays an instrumental role in the global economy and has a unique opportunity to lend their considerable expertise to CBP. By partnering with industry leaders, CBP links our processes with modern business practices, which results in enhanced compliance with trade laws, improves our facilitation and enforcement efforts, and assists the U.S. economy.
Trade Facilitation and Cargo Security (TFCS) Summit
In 2022, the TFCS Summit integrated CBP's Trade Symposium and CTPAT (Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism) conference. This event brings together executives and managers from a broad spectrum of the international trade community and CBP for discussions on the agency’s top priorities and initiatives.
Webinars
CBP hosts trade outreach events via free webinars to provide more timely and up-to-date information to the international trade community on CBP trade policy, as established by the agency.
Advisory Committees
Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC)
COAC shall advise the Secretaries of the Department of the Treasury and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on the commercial operations of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and related DHS and Treasury functions.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection User Fee Advisory Committee (UFAC)
UFAC shall advise the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on issues related to the performance of airport and seaport inspections coinciding with the assessment of an agriculture, customs, or immigration user fee.
Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Act (SBREFA)
The signing of SBREFA into law created a Small Business Administration National Ombudsman and ten Regional Regulatory Fairness Boards to oversee the implementation of the Act. One of the recommendations by the National Ombudsman and the Fairness Boards was for each agency to designate an impartial party to serve as a Regulatory Fairness Representative contact for small businesses.
The Director of Trade Relations for U.S. Customs and Border Protection was selected by the Commissioner to serve as the Regulatory Fairness Representative for the agency and is responsible for performing as the link between the international trading community and senior CBP managers.