CBLE exam structure: how many questions per category
The U.S. Customs Broker License Examination (CBLE) has 80 multiple-choice questions, a time limit of 4.5 hours and a passing score of 75% (60 of 80), according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Each question has four answer choices and one best answer, and nothing is deducted for a wrong answer.
CBP prints every exam in six numbered categories. The table counts the questions in each category for the five most recent exams that CBP has published, from the question ranges printed in each exam booklet.
| Exam | Broker Compliance | Practical Exercise | Classification | Entry / Entry Summary | Valuation | Specialty category | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 2026 | 17 | 9 | 10 | 25 | 15 | Quota: 4 | 80 |
| October 2025 | 20 | 5 | 10 | 25 | 15 | Quota: 5 | 80 |
| April 2025 | 15 | 5 | 15 | 25 | 15 | Modernized Drawback: 5 | 80 |
| October 2024 | 15 | 5 | 15 | 25 | 15 | Modernized Drawback: 5 | 80 |
| May 2024 | 15 | 5 | 15 | 25 | 15 | Modernized Drawback: 5 | 80 |
What stands out
- Entry / Entry Summary is always the largest category: 25 of 80 questions (31%) in all five exams.
- Valuation, Appraisement and Duty Assessment is always 15 (19%).
- Broker Compliance ranged from 15 to 20 questions, Classification from 10 to 15 and Practical Exercise from 5 to 9.
- The sixth category rotates: Modernized Drawback (5 questions) from May 2024 to April 2025, Quota (5, then 4) since October 2025.
- CBP does not announce category counts in advance and changed the mix twice in two years. Use the table to decide where to spend your time, not to skip a topic.
Where the numbers come from
The counts are our own tally of the question ranges printed in the exam booklets that CBP publishes, together with the answer keys, on its page Past Customs Broker License Examinations and Answer Keys. The exam rules (80 questions, 4.5 hours, 75%) are on CBP's General CBLE Information page. Checked against CBP on 5 October 2026.
How CBLE Prep uses it
CBLE Prep builds its 80-question simulations from the average of the last three exams: 25 Entry, 15 Valuation, 17 Broker Compliance, 12 Classification, 6 Practical Exercise and 5 Modernized Drawback questions. Quota questions are currently part of the Entry set; a dedicated Quota set is planned.