INTERNATIONAL TRADE LAW
How to Import Goods With Antidumping Duties
Antidumping (AD) and countervailing (CVD) duties are extra duties on imports sold below fair value or boosted by foreign subsidies — and they can run many times higher than the ordinary tariff. If your product and its country of origin are covered by an order, importing is still possible, but the economics and the compliance burden change completely. This guide explains how the orders work, why you cannot know the final duty at entry, and how importers manage the risk.
What AD/CVD Duties Are and Why They Exist
Dumping occurs when a foreign producer sells goods in the U.S. below their fair-market or home-market value. Subsidization occurs when a foreign government financially supports its producers. U.S. trade-remedy law lets domestic industries petition for extra duties to offset the unfair advantage: antidumping duties address dumping, and countervailing duties address subsidies. The framework traces to the Tariff Act of 1930 and is consistent with the WTO’s Antidumping Agreement. For the basics, see our overview of antidumping and countervailing duties.
Two Agencies Decide, and CBP Collects
An AD/CVD order is the product of a two-agency investigation, and a third agency does the collecting:
| Agency | Role |
|---|---|
| Commerce Department (International Trade Administration) | Determines whether dumping or subsidization occurred and sets the margin/rate |
| International Trade Commission (ITC) | Determines whether the domestic industry is materially injured |
| Customs and Border Protection (CBP) | Collects the duties on covered imports |
Both Commerce and the ITC must reach affirmative findings for an order to issue. The ITC’s preliminary injury determination comes early — generally within 45 days of the petition — and a negative finding ends the case.
Why You Can’t Know the Final Duty at Entry
This is the feature that surprises new importers most. The U.S. uses a retrospective assessment system: the rate you pay at entry is only an estimated cash deposit, not the final liability. The actual duty is calculated later, in an administrative review that Commerce conducts (usually annually) for the period covered. If the reviewed rate is higher than your deposit, you owe the difference, plus interest; if it is lower, you may get money back. In practice, that means the real cost of importing a covered product is not settled until well after the goods are sold — so plan for the contingency.
How to Manage AD/CVD Risk as an Importer
You cannot wish an order away, but you can manage the exposure:
- Check coverage before you buy. Confirm whether your product and country are subject to an existing order — this depends heavily on country of origin, which is itself a frequent enforcement target.
- Get a scope ruling when it’s unclear. If it is genuinely uncertain whether your specific product falls within an order’s “scope,” Commerce can issue a scope ruling. Do not self-decide a close call.
- Watch for evasion exposure. Routing goods through a third country to dodge an order is duty evasion, enforced aggressively under the EAPA. Origin must be real.
- Budget for the deposit-versus-final gap. Because the final rate is set retrospectively, set aside reserves for a possible upward adjustment.
- Keep complete records. Document origin, supplier, and pricing — these are exactly what CBP and Commerce will ask for.
The Cost of Getting It Wrong
Misdeclaring a covered product — or its origin — to avoid AD/CVD duties is among the most heavily penalized conduct in customs enforcement, and it can expose an importer to claims for the evaded duties plus substantial penalties. Our guide to CBP penalties explains how that enforcement works. The conservative path is to confirm coverage up front and import with full disclosure.
Frequently Asked Questions
How high can antidumping duties be? There is no fixed cap — rates are set by the dumping or subsidy margin Commerce calculates and can far exceed the ordinary duty, sometimes exceeding the value of the goods. The exact rate is order- and producer-specific.
Why did my final duty differ from what I paid at entry? Because the U.S. assesses AD/CVD retrospectively. Your entry payment is an estimated cash deposit; the final amount is set later in Commerce’s administrative review, and you settle the difference then.
What is a scope ruling? A determination from Commerce on whether a particular product falls within an existing AD/CVD order. Request one when coverage is genuinely ambiguous rather than guessing.
Can I avoid the duty by shipping through another country? No. Transshipping to disguise origin is illegal duty evasion and is aggressively enforced. Country of origin must reflect where the goods were actually produced.
Worried your product is covered by an AD/CVD order? Reidel Law Firm helps importers check scope, confirm origin, and structure entries around trade-remedy orders — flat-fee import/export compliance work with direct attorney access. Get an import compliance memo →
