Handle edge cases in import

**Description**
Currently utils lacks proper filtering support.

**Proposed solution**
Add configurable filtering with sensible defaults.

**Priority**: Low/Medium

Start by locating the utils code responsible for import handling and read how filtering is currently applied or omitted. Identify the configurable options and expected defaults from nearby code or tests; done means import filtering works for the stated edge cases with sensible defaults and existing behavior remains intact.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.