You're traveling internationally. You have cash with you - maybe for a business deal overseas, money to help family, a property purchase in another country. You know about the $10,000 reporting requirement. But you figure if you forget to declare it, or if you're a little over, they'll just make you fill out a form. Maybe a fine. Then you go on your way.
That's not how it works.
Bulk cash smuggling under 31 USC 5332 is a federal felony. Not a civil infraction. Not a paperwork violation. A crime that carries up to 5 years in federal prison, complete forfeiture of everything involved in the offense, and permanent consequences for your record. And prosecutors don't need to prove your money came from criminal activity. The intent to evade the reporting requirement is the crime itself.
Welcome to Spodek Law Group. We handle federal bulk cash smuggling defense and currency forfeiture cases. If Customs and Border Protection has seized your money, if you've been charged under 31 USC 5332, or if you're facing parallel criminal and civil proceedings - this article explains what you're actually up against and what options may exist.
The Crime Nobody Understands
Most people charged with bulk cash smuggling genuinely believed they were committing, at worst, a technical violation. The law says otherwise.
31 USC 5332 criminalizes knowingly concealing more than $10,000 in currency on your person, in luggage, or in any container, and transporting that currency across the US border with the intent to evade the reporting requirement under 31 USC 5316. Notice what's missing from that definition. There's no requirement that the money came from drugs. No requirement of tax evasion. No requirement of any underlying criminal conduct whatsoever.
The source of your money is completley irrelevant to your guilt.
You could be carrying 100% legitimate funds - savings, a gift, business proceeds, an inheritance - and still face five years in federal prison. The crime is the concealment. The intent to evade. Not where the money came from.
Now heres where people trip themselves up. The $10,000 threshold isn't per bag or per container. It's the combined total. If you have $5,000 in your wallet, $4,000 in your carry-on, and $3,000 in your checked luggage, your carrying $12,000. And if you tell the CBP officer you're carrying "less than $10,000" - which people do, becuase they're thinking about each individual stash - you've just made a false statement while concealing currency in multiple containers.
This is exactly how travelers who genuinely meant no harm end up facing federal charges. The person who splits $25,000 across three bags "to travel safely" has created the elements of the crime: concealment across multiple containers plus failure to report.
What do prosecutors need to convict you? Four elements. More than $10,000 in currency. Concealment on your person or in containers. Cross-border transport or attempt to transport. Intent to evade the reporting requirement. Thats it. Not drug trafficking. Not organized crime. Not money laundering from some underlying offense. Just those four elements, proved beyond a reasonable doubt.
The Dual Track That Destroys You
Federal enforcement of currency violations operates on two parallel tracks simultaneously - and most defendants don't realize this until both tracks have already hit them.
Track One: Criminal prosecution under 31 USC 5332. Up to 5 years imprisonment. Fines up to $250,000 if the jury finds "willful" conduct. Mandatory forfeiture of all property involved in the offense and all property traceable to it.
Track Two: Civil forfeiture under 31 USC 5317. The government takes your money through a civil proceeding that has nothing to do with your criminal case. Lower burden of proof. Different rules. Different timeline.
The government can pursue both at the same time.
And here's what makes this particuarly devastating. Criminal prosecution requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Civil forfeiture only requires preponderance of the evidence - meaning "more likely than not." You can beat the criminal charges completley and still lose every dollar through forfeiture.
One failure to report can trigger multiple federal charges:
- Bulk Cash Smuggling (31 USC 5332) - up to 5 years
- Structuring (31 USC 5324) - up to 5 years, or 10 if part of pattern exceeding $100,000
- Money Laundering (18 USC 1956) - up to 20 years
- Conspiracy - additional exposure depending on circumstances
The numbers tell the story of how aggressivley the government pursues these cases. According to CBP enforcement statistics, officers and agents seized an average of $152,418 in unreported currency every single day along the nation's borders in fiscal year 2024. Over the last 17 years, CBP seized nearly $2 billion across more than 30,000 seizures at US airports alone. Half a billion dollars of that was taken solely because travelers failed to declare more than $10,000 - not because there was any evidence the money was dirty.
And forfeiture dosent stop at the cash you were carrying. The statute says "any property traceable to such property." Bank accounts. Vehicles. Real estate purchased with funds connected to the offense. The cascade can be staggering.
What Happens When CBP Stops You
Imagine your at an international departure gate. A CBP officer asks how much currency your carrying. You say "$9,000." They search and find $15,000. What happens next determines whether you face civil forfeiture, criminal prosecution, or both.
Under 31 USC 5317(b), CBP officers have extraordinary authority at the border. They can stop and search any person, vehicle, luggage, or container entering or departing the United States without a warrant. International airports are considered border ports of entry. There is no reasonable suspicion requirement. There is no probable cause requirement. They can search you becuase your at the border.
Once they find unreported currency exceeding $10,000, the process moves fast:
- Currency is seized immediately
- You are questioned - and your statements are being recorded
- Your answers become evidence in any future criminal or civil proceeding
- You may be detained, or you may be released
- A Custody Receipt is generated documenting the seizure
Everything you say at that moment becomes ammunition for the government.
People instinctively try to explain. "I didn't know about the requirement." "I was nervous and forgot." "The money is from my business, its totally legitimate." "I split it up becuase I was worried about theft." Every one of those statements can be used. The explanation about splitting it up? That's evidence of concealment. The claim that you "forgot"? Prosecutors will argue you knew about the requirement and deliberately failed to comply.
Now comes the civil forfeiture trap. Under 18 USC 983(d), the burden of proving your an "innocent owner" falls on you. The government seizes first. You have to prove either that you didn't know about the conduct giving rise to forfeiture, or that when you learned about it, you did everything reasonably possible to stop it.
A Notice of Seizure arrives by certified mail. You have a limited number of days - typically 35 - to file a claim contesting the forfeiture. Miss that deadline? Your money is gone permanently. There is no extension. There is no second chance. The clock starts when they mail the notice, not when you recieve it.
How Federal Defense Changes Your Odds
In 1998, the Supreme Court decided United States v. Bajakajian. A traveler had tried to leave the country with $357,144 in his luggage without declaring it. The government wanted to forfeit all of it. The Court ruled that forfeiting the entire amount was "grossly disproportional to the gravity of the offense" and violated the Eighth Amendment's prohibition on excessive fines.
It was the first time the Supreme Court struck down the federal government's aggressive use of forfeiture.
Most defendants never invoke this protection. Either they dont know about it, or their attorney doesn't argue it correctly. But it exists. And in the right case, with the right presentation, it can mean the difference between losing everything and retaining a substantial portion of legitimately obtained funds.
Defense strategies in bulk cash smuggling cases include:
- Challenging intent to evade - there's a difference between negligent failure to report and deliberate evasion
- Invoking the Bajakajian excessive fines doctrine
- Procedural defenses - notice requirements, deadline violations by the government, chain of custody issues
- Innocent owner assertions under 18 USC 983
- Pre-charge intervention during the investigation phase, before formal charges are filed
- Negotiating resolution of civil forfeiture separately from criminal exposure
The distinction between criminal defense and forfeiture defense matters enormously. These are different proceedings with different rules, different timelines, and different strategies. What helps you in one can hurt you in the other if not handled carefully.
Todd Spodek has handled federal currency cases involving both criminal prosecution under 31 USC 5332 and parallel civil forfeiture proceedings. He understands how these cases work in practice - the interplay between what CBP does at the border, what AUSA prosecutors decide to charge, and what forfeiture litigation actually looks like.
When Your Facing These Charges
If you've had currency seized at the border, or if you're facing bulk cash smuggling charges, Spodek Law Group can help you understand where your case stands and what realistic options exist.
The consultation is free. Theres no obligation.
What you'll get is an honest assessment. Are you facing criminal charges, civil forfeiture, or both? What does the evidence actually show about intent? What are the deadlines you need to know about? What defenses apply to your specific situation?
Call us at 212-300-5196. Forfeiture deadlines are real - miss them and you lose the right to contest the seizure. Criminal cases move forward whether or not you have counsel. The earlier you act, the more options exist.
Were here when you need us.
