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Federal officers seized $99,443 from two groups departing Dulles International Airport over Memorial Day weekend after finding undeclared cash hidden in clothing, a purse and women’s undergarments.
Travelers may legally carry any amount of currency out of the United States. However, anyone transporting more than $10,000 internationally must accurately report the money to the U.S. Treasury.
On Saturday, May 23, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers stopped a U.S. citizen and his family before they boarded a flight to Brussels, Belgium. Vito, a nearly 2-year-old German Shepherd trained to detect currency, assisted officers during the inspection.
The man initially said he and his wife were each carrying $7,000. After officers explained the reporting requirement, the family revised its total to $20,000 and then declared $22,500 on the official currency form.
A subsequent inspection uncovered more cash inside a small purse. Officers also reported finding $1,450 in the pockets of a second pair of pants the man was wearing. The family was carrying $46,520 in all.
The following day, officers encountered a woman and her mother, who is from Cameroon, as they prepared to board another Brussels-bound flight.
The pair first reported carrying $15,000 after officers explained the rules. The daughter, a U.S. citizen, later declared $22,361 on the required form.
During a baggage inspection, officers found additional money stitched inside women’s undergarments. The final total reached $52,923.
CBP seized the currency in both cases, but released the travelers without criminal charges.
Christine Waugh, CBP’s area port director for Washington, D.C., described the concealment efforts as extreme and unnecessary. She said the reporting rules neither limit how much money travelers may take abroad nor impose a tax on it. Instead, the requirement is intended to help authorities identify bulk-cash smuggling that could be connected to illegal activity.
Both groups could have retained their money and continued their trips if they had accurately declared the full amounts, according to the agency. Instead, they experienced delays or missed flights.
Dulles officers have reported several other large currency seizures this year. In April, they seized more than $163,000 in undeclared money from four travelers. Four others had more than $119,000 seized in January.
Nationwide, CBP officers and agents seized an average of more than $182,000 per day in undeclared or illicit currency between October 2024 and September 2025.