# CBLE pass rates

**The short version:** the last seven exams passed 34, 13, 24, 30, 12, 22 and 13 percent of candidates. CBP publishes these rates before appeal decisions and has never published a rate after appeals.

| Sitting | Pass rate before appeals | Candidates | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| October 28, 2026 | 13% | not published | [CBP exam page](https://www.cbp.gov/trade/programs-administration/customs-brokers/license-examination-notice-examination) |
| April 22, 2026 | 22% | not published | CBP exam page |
| October 22, 2025 | 12% | not published | CBP exam page |
| April 23, 2025 | 30% | 956 completed | [CBP advisory committee paper, Sept 2025](https://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/2025-09/ngf_broker_modernization_issue_paper_-_sept_2025.pdf) |
| October 23, 2024 | 24% | 1,045 offered seats | [CBP advisory committee paper, Dec 2024](https://cbp.gov/sites/default/files/2024-12/ngf_broker_modernization_issue_paper_-_dec_2024.pdf) |
| May 1, 2024 | 13% | 1,132 registered | [CBP advisory committee paper, June 2024](https://cbp.gov/sites/default/files/2024-06/ngf_broker_modernization_issue_paper_-_june_2024.pdf) |
| October 25, 2023 (first four-choice exam) | 34% | 1,141 | [CBP advisory committee paper, March 2024](https://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/assets/documents/2024-Feb/NGF%20Broker%20Modernization%20Issue%20Paper%20-%20March%202024.pdf) |
| April 26, 2023 | not published by CBP | 1,189 sat | CBP advisory committee paper, June 2023 |
| October 26, 2022 | 11.1% | not published | CBP exam page, archived December 2022 |
| April 27, 2022 | 39.6% | about 800 | CBP advisory committee paper, June 2022 |
| October 8, 2020 | 37% | not published | CBP advisory committee presentation, March 2021 |

## Reading the numbers

- **Before appeals.** Every rate CBP publishes is "prior to appeal decisions". Some candidates pass on appeal, so the final rate is a little higher, but CBP does not say by how much.
- **The candidate counts differ in kind.** CBP's papers count "registered", "offered seats", "completed" or "sat". They are not comparable with each other.
- **The swings are large.** Rates moved between 12% and 34% over seven sittings. CBP has not explained the swings; its stated aim is consistent difficulty across sittings.
- **Older figures are thinner.** We found no CBP figure for April 2018, October 2018, April 2019, April 2021 or October 2021. A secondary source gives about 5.5% for April 2023; we could not confirm it with CBP, so it is not in the table.

## Why this site drills lookups

At these rates, most candidates who know the material still fail, and the most common reason trade press gives is time. You have about 3 minutes 22 seconds a question. The [drills](https://customsbrokerlicenseexam.com/drills/) train the part that is fastest to improve: knowing where to look.

Sources checked November 14, 2026. Full notes, including the archive links, are in our research files.

Source: https://customsbrokerlicenseexam.com/pass-rates/ (updated 2026-11-14)