U.S. CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION
DIRECTIVE NUMBER:
5240-010
DIRECTIVE TITLE:
Short-Term Holding Facilities Handling, Storage,Transference, and/or Return of Detainee Personal Property

EFFECTIVE DATE:
August 2024

CBP Publication No. 1724-0422

What are Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) “Exemptions”?
Not all information within records is required to be released under the FOIA. Congress established nine
exemptions from disclosure for certain categories of information to protect against certain harms, such as aninvasion of personal privacy, or harm to law enforcement investigations. The FOIA authorizes agencies towithhold information falling under these categories when an agency reasonably foresees that disclosure would
harm an interest protected by one of the nine exemptions are described below.
Exemption 1
Classified Information: Information specifically authorized under criteria established by an executive order to be
kept secret in the interest of national defense or foreign policy and are in fact properly classified pursuant to suchexecutive order.
Exemption 2
Personnel Rules and Practices: Information related solely to the internal personnel rules/practices of an agency.
Exemption 3Information Exempted by Statute: Information specifically exempted from disclosure by statute if that statuterequires that the matters be withheld from the public in such a manner as to leave no discretion on the issue; orestablishes particular criteria for withholding or refers to particular types of matters to be withheld; and if enacted
after the date of enactment of the OPEN FOIA Act of 2009, specifically cites to 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(3).
Exemption 4
Trade Secrets and Confidential Commercial Information: Trade secrets and commercial or financial information
obtained from a person and privileged or confidential.
Exemption 5
Privileged Information: Inter-agency or intra-Agency memorandums or letters that would not be available by law
to a party other than an agency in litigation with the agency, provided the deliberative process privilege shall not
apply to records created 25 years or more before the date on which the records were requested.
Exemption 6
Personal Information: Personnel and medical files and similar files the disclosure of which would constitute a
clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.
Exemption 7
Certain Law Enforcement Information: Records or information compiled for law enforcement purposes (but only tothe extent that the production of such law enforcement records/information) that:
7(A) Could reasonably be expected to interfere with enforcement proceedings.
7(B) Would deprive a person of a right to a fair trial/impartial adjudication.
7(C) Could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.
7(D) Could reasonably be expected to disclose the identity of a confidential source, including a state, local,
or foreign agency or authority or any private institution which furnished information on a confidential basis,and, in the case of a record or information compiled by a law enforcement authority in the course of acriminal investigation execution of a lawful national security intelligence investigation, information
furnished by a confidential source.
7(E) Would disclose techniques and procedures for law enforcement investigations/prosecutions or would
disclose guidelines for law enforcement investigations/prosecutions if such disclosure reasonably risked
circumvention of the law.
7(F) Could reasonably be expected to endanger the life or physical safety of any individual.
Exemption 8
Information About Financial Institutions: Information contained in or related to examination, operating orcondition reports prepared by, on behalf of, or for the use of an agency responsible for the regulation or
supervision of financial institutions.
Exemption 9
Information About Wells: Geological or geophysical information and data, including maps, concerning wells.
Additional descriptions and examples of each FOIA Exemption Category above can be found at:https://www.dhs.gov/foia-exemptions