Category: Compliance

A CBP notice of seizure letter contains bad legal advice from CBP; 30 days from date of mailing, not date of the letter.

Don’t Take Legal Advice From CBP

Posted by Jason P. Wapiennik on July 6, 2016

In our piece of responding to a customs money seizure and a petition for return of seized cash, we warn anyone who has had cash seized by Customs against trusting customs that, in a few simple steps, they will get their money back. Do not trust the purported requirements in the notice of seizure like explaining why you “broke the law” (admitting a crime = bad idea) or “unquestionably proving” the source and use of the money, or that bank statements and tax returns are always necessary. Do not take legal advice from CBP. You need legal advice from a customs lawyer.

Recently, I read a court opinion by a (wise) judge who complained about bad legal advice from CBP. In all the 50 states, only lawyers can give legal advice. If a lawyer happens to work for CBP, they could not give advice to someone who has had cash or property seized because they would have a conflict of interest and could not be expected to give candid advice. This judge, in United States v. Martin, 460 F. Supp. 2d 669, 674 (D. Md. 2006), said:

It is . . . unfortunate that, though sent by non-lawyers to people who could not in any case be their legal clients, [CBP] purport[s] to give legal advice [by stating in the notice of seizure letter “Your legal options are as follows.”[]].

It is illegal to practice law without a license. So when someone at CBP tells you what to do to protect your legal rights, it’s probably illegal. That’s why I bristle when I read CBP’s notice of seizure because it is often inaccurate and contradictory. Worse still are decision letters that ignore or mis-state the petitioner’s right to file a supplemental petition. This puts anyone in jeopardy when trying to respond to the complex and contradictory instructions in a notice of seizure.

Another of those bad pieces of legal advice from CBP is that, if you choose to file an administrative petition under 19 CFR 171.2, it must be filed within 30 days of the date of the notice of seizure letter. This is potentially misleading. In fact, 171.2(b)(1) says “Petitions for relief from seizures must be filed within 30 days from the date of mailing of the notice of seizure.”

In saying this, the notice of seizure letter presumes that the date on the letter is the date it is being mailed. That is sometimes true. It is also sometimes not true. Certainly, there is probably a rebuttable presumption that the date on the letter is the same date as the date of mailing. Atteberry v. United States, 27 CIT 751; 267 F Supp 2d 1364 (2003). But, the post mark on the letter might bear evidence that the date of mailing is other than on the date of the letter.

The best practice is not to fight about it, and submit a petition within 30 days of the date of the letter or obtain an extension. But if 30 days has already passed and CBP is telling you they will not accept the petition, you should hope you saved the mailing envelope and it is post-marked after the date of the notice of seizure letter. And that CBP will act reasonably when presented with that information.

I once received a letter from CBP that provided 30 days to respond. It was dated April 6, ‘post-marked’ on April 15 (from a private meter), and received on April 29. 14 days is a long time for a piece of first class mail to be delivered, and so I suspect from April 15 to April 26 it was sitting on someone’s desk, until that person finally put it in the mailbox for pickup.

Did you take bad legal advice from CBP?

If you “missed” an incorrect deadline or have been asked to admit a violation to CBP, please contact us by clicking the “Call Now” button at the top or right side, or fill out the contact form for a callback.

Prepaid Card Seizure & CBP Reporting Requirement

Posted by Jason P. Wapiennik on June 24, 2016

On Forbes the other day, I read an interesting article about prepaid debit cards getting seized.The story is about Oklahoma police, but it discusses how they benefited from some technology developed for use by U.S. Customs & Border Protection in seizing prepaid debit cards. The interesting part of the story is that criminals are increasingly moving money across the border by means of prepaid debit cards; moreover, that these the information contained on the prepaid debit card can also be stored on any card with a magnetic stripe, including a hotel room key.

Truly fascinating, ingenious, and in hindsight, obvious. The story also says that detecting what is stored on these electronic debit cards used to take weeks, but some company called ERAD came up with a better way allowing customs to access the information in seconds. According to ERAD Group:

Even with probable cause, [customs officials] had no way of identifying the card value, freezing the funds or seizing the money at the point of arrest. ERAD-Prepaid™ solved that problem by condensing a process that takes many days, weeks or months into one that takes a few seconds.

This shed some light on to an increasing number of customs seizure press releases that I’ve read that involve people importing things CBP has sometimes called “fradulent gift cards” that contain “personal identity information”. One such story appeared the other day:

On Saturday, CBP officers arrested Ramzi Kadir, a 22-year old male, Mouad Benameur, a 21-year old male, and Abdelhakim Zaier, a 22-year old male, all citizens of Canada, after 13 fraudulent gift cards containing personal identity information were discovered in their possession. The men and cards were turned over to New York State Police.

So, perhaps cash was not stored on the magnetic stripes but some other personal information was stored. Something nefarious enough to cause CBP to arrest these individuals.

The Forbes piece caused me to wonder, if you’re traveling across the border with a prepaid debit card does it count toward the $10,000 threshold reporting requirement? Do prepaid cards with more than $10,000 have to be reported to CBP to avoid seizure? I think, yeah, probably. Most likely. Certainly, if the law isn’t clear whether it counts or not — to be on the safe side, you should report it to CBP to avoid a potential prepaid card seizure.

For the time being, I do not have time to look into this and provide a definitive legal answer; I’ll save that for paying clients. I can say that the definition of monetary instruments does not explicitly list “prepaid cards” as a category, but it certainly seems to be more like a “bearer instrument,” which is required to be reported.

Recall that things like credit cards and debit cards attached to a traditional bank account do not have to be reported under 31 USC 5316. But the prepaid cards are unique in that they are not attached to a bank account; basically, the money exists on the card and can be accessed at an ATM.

Have you had prepaid cards seized by CBP?

If you had prepaid cards seized by CBP, give us a call and click the contact button on this page to get in touch with us today!

Bologna placed under the rear seat of a vehicle was made part of an amended customs declaration

Amending a customs declaration? No baloney!

Posted by Jason P. Wapiennik on June 17, 2016

An interesting story about a seizure for meat (bologna/baloney) from Mexico presents an opportunity for me to talk about amending customs declarations. In this case, an amendment to a customs declaration by someone entering the US from Mexico was literally a bunch of baloney:

The seizure was made at approximately 9:00 a.m. at the Bridge of the Americas international crossing after a 2007 Chevrolet Silverado with New Mexico license plates entered the port from Mexico.

The driver initially made a negative declaration for any agriculture products however, during a secondary exam, the driver amended his declaration and told CBP agriculture specialists that he had multiple rolls of bologna under the rear seat of his vehicle.

CBP agriculture specialist discovered and seized the contraband meat, and then destroyed the product. The driver was released.

Within CBP regulations, it is said that before examination of baggage begins an amended declaration is allowed if “the fact that the article has not been declared is brought to the attention of the examining officer by the passenger.” If examination of the baggage has already begun an amendment to the customs declaration is allowed “if, before any undeclared article is found, the passenger advises the examining officer that he has such an article and the officer is satisfied there was no fraudulent intent.” 19 CFR 148.16(a) and (b).

So technically speaking, to allow amending the customs declaration CBP would have had to be “satisfied” that by placing the bologna under his seat “there was no fraudulent intent.” Hmm? I guess you have to put that much bologna somewhere, and it just won’t all fit in plain view? Look at the picture and you be the judge.

Incidentally, United States v. Cowden, 677 F.2d 417 (8th Cir. 1982), the 8th circuit court of appeals applied this same right to amend a declaration to currency reporting requirements under 31 USC 5316, and stated “[i]t is manifestly unfair . . . once a passenger has requested to amend his declaration, to forbid amendment.“

Understanding CBP’s Election of Proceedings Form

Posted by Jason P. Wapiennik on October 28, 2015

What is an election of proceedings form?

Upon receipt of a notice of seizure for unreported currency by Customs, you will see that CBP asks you to complete an “election of proceedings form.” This article is intended to help you understand what the form is and what can be done with it. As always, you should consult with a lawyer before communicating with Customs and deciding how to handle your seizure case.

What’s the purpose of an election of proceedings form?

The CAFRA Election of Proceedings Form. — The CAFRA Election of Proceedings Form tells Customs how you want to proceed with your currency seizure case

This election of proceeding form does exactly that: it tells Customs how you want to proceed with your currency seizure case (or other property seizure case, for that matter, but we here are limiting this to CBP currency seizure cases) under various different laws and procedural options. This form presents you with a variety of options, all of which are explained in some legal detail on the form itself:

Petition Administratively
Officer in Compromise
Abandon Any Claim or Interest
File a Claim for Court Action

You should only choose what option is best for your case after consulting with a lawyer; often a petition makes sense, but there are many times when a claim or offer in compromise is strategically the best decision to get your seized cash back from customs.

What box should I check on the form, and should I file a claim?

You should not blindly sign and returning documents to Customs without completely understanding what you are doing. As CBP’s notice of seizure says, you can only elect/choose one option. Prior to contacting our office for a consultation, you may find our article about responding to a currency seizure an aid to your understanding of the currency seizure process.

I often see client’s mistakenly send in both an election of proceedings form that says they want to file a petition and a CAFRA Claim Form. These are clients who have started the process by themselves and quickly get frustrated and lost in procedural details, who finally seek our help to get their seized cash back from customs.

You cannot sign the election of proceedings form requested that CBP consider a petition, and then also simultaneously file a “CAFRA Seized Asset and Claim Form”. The two exclude each other; you cannot do both at the same time. You must either file a petition, file a claim, make an offer in compromise, or abandon your interest.

What does each option do?

Again, the election of proceedings form goes into a good amount of legal detail that we won’t repeat here. But basically:

Filing a petition keeps the proceeding with Customs, to be decided by the port’s Fines, Penalties & Forfeitures Officer;
Filing the CAFRA Seized Asset Claim Form removes the decision from Customs FP&F and puts the case in front of a federal judge;
Abandoning your interest does just that, relinquishes your interest in the property; and,
Making an offer in compromise essentially is an avenue for someone to make a settlement offer to the government to settle a “questionable” (i.e., implausible) claim or controversy, and the offer in compromise laws must be strictly complied with.

There are often very good reasons for filing a claim. But, when filing a claim, you should understand that submitting the CAFRA Seized Asset Claim Form will take the decision before a Federal district court judge. That means you will have to appear at a Federal district court on several occasions, exchange written discovery, take and have your deposition taken (that is, sworn testimony under oath and recorded), likely make and respond to several pre-trial motions (such as motion for summary judgment or motion to dismiss), and ultimately, have your “day in court” with a real judge and real government prosecutor’s cross-examining you about the circumstances of the seizure and your finances.

As stated, the analysis of “what box to check” should not be undertaken with consulting with an attorney who knows the customs laws. This article is not a substitute for the legal advice you would receive from a law firm like us, so do not rely on it.

I’m confused about what to do. Now what?

If you have had currency seized from Customs do not try to respond yourself but hire our firm, because we know what we are doing and have successfully handled many cases like yours. If you have questions, please give us a call at (734) 855-4999. We are able to assist with cash seized by customs around the country, including Chicago, Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles, Orlando and many other places, and not just locally in Detroit. Please read these other articles:

Tuition Money Seized by Customs

Posted by Jason P. Wapiennik on August 18, 2015

Customs seizure of tuition money is a common occurrence in the weeks prior to the start of either semester of the school year. Like all customs currency seizures, the seizure typically happens because of a failure to file a currency report by people transporting money into the United States of amounts over $10,000.

Lots of foreign students come to the United States and pay their tuition in cash as most colleges won’t accept tuition payments by credit card. Likewise, many foreign exchange students and children of immigrants get a lot of cash assistance from family overseas who understand their duty to pay for their children’s education; it may be a lump $15,000 sum from a parent or grandparent, or a few hundred or thousand dollars from several different relatives or benefactors.

Customs can easily identify someone on student visa, who is relatively young, and is arriving from China, India or Korea; we previously wrote about how customs can “target” currency reporting enforcement based on just these types of criteria. This makes it very easy for them to target students who will then be required to give an accurate report of currency down to the dollar, and if they don’t to seize their cash. The only thing higher than the cost of education is the cost of not accurately reporting money over $10,000 to customs.

What to do when Customs seizes your tuition money?

Don’t let customs seize cash. Traveling with cash? Claim monetary instruments exceeding $10,000 USD!

Take the advice we have already given for responding to a customs money seizure by reading our popular article on the topic: Responding to a Customs Currency Seizure. Currency seizure cases are handled the same whether the money that was seized by customs was intended to be used to pay for college tuition or, for example, for travel expenses. As long as the use of the money is legitimate (and tuition is a legitimate use) and the source of the money is legitimate, with the right legal help you have a good chance of getting your seized tuition money back. If you want to know what a petition to get seized money back from customs looks like, read our article here.

Will I get the money in time to pay my tuition?

It really depends on a variety of circumstances, as we talked about in our popular article on the topic: How long does it take Customs to decide a petition for a currency/monetary instrument seizure? In every case, hiring the right attorney to handle your case can speed up the process, from getting the notice of seizure issued, to gathering evidence (obtaining supporting documents, preparing affidavits and giving customs everything they need without waiting for them to request additional documents), researching and drafting the legal basis for the obtaining a return of the seized currency in the petition, and ultimately, if successful, getting the money returned without delay, often by direct deposit. We work hard at Great Lakes Customs Law to get your seized currency returned back to you in a timely manner by doing the job right the first time.

How can I find out more or hire a law firm to help with my customs currency seizure?

If you have had cash seized by customs and are contemplating what to do next, please make use of the other information available on this website or call our office at (734) 855-4999 to speak to a customs lawyer, or e-mail us through our contact page. We are able to assist with cash seized by customs around the country, including Detroit, Chicago, Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles, Orlando and many other places. Please read these other articles:

U.S. Customs Seize $541,000 in Unsafe Consumer Products

Posted by Jason P. Wapiennik on July 2, 2015

When importing into the United States an importer must make sure to comply with the customs laws for classification, valuation, invoicing, etc. But they also must make sure that they’re products are not harmful or in violations of the myriad of other regulations enforced by CBP at the border; whether they be FDA, Department of Agriculture, or the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Recently, customs seized over half a million dollars in unsafe consumer products in a joint effort with the French government.

The story below:

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and French Customs General Directorate announce the results of Operation Bathe and Beaute, a bilateral Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) enforcement operation targeting counterfeit personal care products and electric personal care devices. The joint operation, conducted from April 8 through May 4, resulted in the seizure of 76 shipments of more than 31,000 counterfeit items for a combined manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $541,000.

“Operation Bathe and Beaute reflects our ongoing efforts to interdict illegal trade in counterfeit merchandise, which threatens the competitiveness of legitimate businesses and can jeopardize consumer health and safety,” said Assistant Commissioner Brenda Smith of CBP’s Office of International Trade.

76 shipments of more than 31,000 counterfeit items for a combined manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $541,000.

“After the successful Core Systems operation in late 2013, this fourth joint operation between CBP and French Customs demonstrates once again how important it is to exchange information and act together to fight organized crime in a global world,” said François Richard, French Customs Attaché.

The four week operation focused on personal care products and devices that potentially introduce dangerous chemicals and bacteria to the skin and eyes or burning or electrocution due to non-standardized wiring and ineffectual family planning protection to the consumer. Products seized during this event included make-up, condoms, hair removal devices, contact lenses, hair curlers, straighteners and skin cleansing devices.

You might be facing penalties from customs for importing counterfeit merchandise. We can help. Typically, we recommended preparing and filing a petition, with the assistance of legal counsel, which argues persuasively for the substantial mitigation, or when the facts and law warrant it, cancellation of the penalty in full.

Great Lakes Customs Law has been very successful in getting these kinds of penalties reduced and, sometimes, even eliminated entirely (some history of our success is HERE).If you have had merchandise seized by customs because they allege it is counterfeit and contains trademark violations and/or have a received a notice of penalty for importing alleged counterfeits or for making an importation contrary to law, call our office at (734) 855-4999 to speak to a customs lawyer, or e-mail us through our contact page. We are able to assist petitions for customs penalties and seizures around the country, including Detroit, Chicago, Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles, Orlando and many other places. Please read these other articles:

CBP to Help U.S. Exporters Resolve Tariff Disputes with Foreign Governments

Posted by Jason P. Wapiennik on June 18, 2015

A very long but worthy read appears in today’s Federal Register. It is a new opportunity from U.S. Customs & Border Protection to make U.S. products more competitive overseas. Essentially, if you are a U.S. exporter whose exports are being incorrectly classified or valued by a foreign government, you now have recourse to the CBP who will, if they agree with your position, work through the appropriate channels to achieve a resolution. Here is the most relevant text from the notice:

Inquiries Concerning Tariff Classification or Customs Valuation by 
Other Customs Administrations Affecting U.S. Exports

    By publication of this notice, U.S. Customs and Border Protection 
emphasizes that opportunities exist to strengthen communication and 
coordination between industry, CBP, other customs administrations, and 
the WCO to advance the shared goal of facilitating international trade. 
Greater collaboration with industry promotes improved technical 
understanding among contracting parties and helps to foster uniformity 
in the interpretation and application of the HS Convention and WTO 
Valuation Agreement.
    On matters involving non-uniform tariff classification or customs 
valuation treatment by other customs administrations, individual 
parties or firms do not have standing to initiate dispute settlement 
procedures or consultations under the HS Convention or the WTO 
Valuation Agreement. Consequently, for a U.S. individual or firm to 
raise a tariff classification or customs valuation dispute, that party 
must file an inquiry or complaint with the U.S. government and provide, 
or assist in the collection of, any information relating to the matter 
which may be required.
    Accordingly, CBP hereby invites U.S. exporters to file with CBP 
requests for assistance in resolving any tariff classification or 
customs valuation treatment by other customs administrations affecting 
U.S. exports.Of course, as a threshold technical matter, in order to provide the 
requested assistance, CBP must agree with the position of the exporter 
with regard to the specific matter brought to CBP's attention.
    CBP will endeavor to provide an initial response to such requests 
within 60 days of their receipt. Thereafter, in cooperation with the 
appropriate agencies, CBP will consider the appropriate course of 
action, including but not limited to the initiation of consultations or 
dispute settlement at meetings of the HSC or TCCV at the WCO. The 
inquirer or complainant will be informed of the progress achieved in 
resolving the matter. Requests for assistance on tariff classification 
or customs valuation treatment by other customs administrations 
affecting U.S. exports should be addressed to U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection, Office of International Trade, Regulations & Rulings, 
Attention: Commercial and Trade Facilitation Division, 90 K St. NE., 
10th Floor, Washington, DC 20229-1177.

Confidentiality

    Information submitted by U.S. exporters concerning requests for 
assistance may, in some instances, include confidential commercial or 
financial information, the disclosure of which could result in 
competitive harm to the business submitter. Such information is, 
generally, protected under the provisions of the Freedom of Information 
Act (5 U.S.C. 552) (FOIA), the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a), and the 
Trade Secrets Act (18 U.S.C. 1905). If confidential treatment is 
requested, submitters should specifically designate the information it 
considers confidential. Such requests will be handled in accordance 
with CBP Regulations (19 CFR 103.35) regarding the protection of such 
information.

If you need help classifying your exports and want the assistance of CBP, you should contact our office by e-mail or call (734) 855-4999. We are experienced in adressing specific concerns of clients before federal angencies, congressional committees, and classifying products in the HTSUS. You can also make use of our other articles, such as:

CBP Fines Agricultural Products Smugglers $98,000

Posted by Jason P. Wapiennik on April 22, 2015

When you heard that someone is a smuggler, or that they’ve smuggled something you typically think of smuggling drugs or other nefarious types of products. Most people don’t realize smuggling is essentially just another word for concealing. Concealing can be accomplished by outfitting a vehicle or container to hide products, by hiding illicit product with legitimate products in the same shipment, or by falsely declaring the contents of a shipment on an invoice or manifest.

In the story we quote below, the “shippers and freight forwarders employ[ed] fictitious shipper names and addresses, and provide[d] unrelated cargo descriptions” in an effort to smuggle the goods into the country. The goods were prohibited agricultural goods that contained unsafe foods or a risk of harboring invasive insect species. CBP takes this very seriously in the wake of the destructive effects posed by species that arrived in the United States via importation, like the Emerald ash border (see our article on Regulated Wood Packaging Violations)

In the story, U.S. Customs & Border Protection Agriculture Specialists conducted a special operation to “interrupt an extensive network of purposely mislabeled and high risk agriculture products coming from Hong Kong, China, India, and Saudi Arabia that were “en route to various locations throughout the United States, including ethnic restaurants, food stores, and private residences.”

From the story, which you can read in full HERE, that the purchases were largely made by consumers over the Internet.

Various concealment methods were discovered during this operation. CBPAS found meat smuggled in fish packets and tea bags, fruits inside sealed cookie bags, loose and packaged seeds within candy wrappers, and seeds in foil-lined bags in an effort to avoid x-ray detection.

The prohibited contraband included fresh plums and other fresh plant products, eggs, propagative plant materials including invasive species, and fresh and processed poultry and pork products coming from countries with known virulent disease outbreaks such as Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) and Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD).

In total, this special operation yielded 1,104 inspected shipments, 73 shipments Returned to Origin (RTO), 198 Emergency Action Notifications (EANs), four mis-delivery penalties, and 98 mis-manifesting penalties netting a total of $98,000 in fines. Additionally, CBPAS destroyed over 900 pounds of contraband from 146 shipments and found 10 pest interceptions.

* * *

If you need help petitiong for the mitigation of penalties with customs you should contact our office by e-mail or call (734) 855-4999. We are experienced in defending customs penalties and preparing detailed and well argued petitions for mitigation of penalties or liquidated damages. You can also make use of our other articles, such as:

Customs penalties articles:

Chinese Honey Seized in Houston for Antidumping Duty Evasion

Posted by Jason P. Wapiennik on April 10, 2015

We previously wrote about the dangers of not knowing your supply chain, conducting due diligence, and how inadvertently buying goods you have no idea are subjecting to antidumping duties could get you into a mess of trouble and commercial penalties under 19 USC 1592.

At Channel 6 News in Houston, via the Associated Press, is an interesting story about antidumping duty evasion on honey that originates from China but was made it’s way through Latvia, Mexico, and ultimately, through the Port of Houston at the U.S. Border. Here is the interest party of the story, and it has to do with befuddlement at why Houston has become the focal point of illegal Chinese honey imports into the U.S.:

Before the latest seizures, federal agents disrupted a network of honey importers who managed to evade $180 million in antidumping duties, which are penalties placed on imports that are priced at less than fair value. The penalty is imposed top provide relief to domestic industries that may be hurt by the low import values.

According to Richard Halverson, with Homeland Security’s Houston investigations unit, the city has become a focal point for illegal honey imports, but officials are not sure why.

You can read the rest HERE. Usually people smuggle drugs, money, gold, jewelry, and other things we consider valuable. Honey is not in that category. But, the smuggling here dealt with avoiding paying extra duties. That gets the product in cheaper than competition. But how much duty savings is your freedom, or non-liability for 592 penalties worth?

If you need help conducting due diligence, or face duty or penalty liability with customs you should contact our office by e-mail or call (734) 855-4999. We are experienced in defending customs 592 penalties, disclosing potential violations through prior disclosures, responding to notices of penalties, and preparing detailed and well argued petitions for mitigation of penalties or liquidated damages. You can also make use of our other articles, such as:

Customs 592 penalties articles:

Customs Seeks to Enforce § 1592 Penalties for Misclassification at CIT

Posted by Jason P. Wapiennik on March 12, 2015

The industry website RubberNews.com has a story about a tire distributor called China Tire out of California who is facing a potential $17 million fraud penaltiy under 19 USC § 1592 for allegedly fradulent, negligent, or grossly negligent mis-classification of certain bus and truck tires into the United States. According to the story, which relies on the government’s allegations filed in the Court of International Trade, China Tire basically did some broker-shopping after its first customs broker refused to re-classify its product into a duty free Customs Money Seizure provision of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS).

Instead of classifying them as bus and truck tires, they were classified as duty-free pneumatic tires. This classification caught the attention of Customs and requests for information were sent out. China Tire responded to these requests that “they were pneumatic tires for passenger cars.” Subsequently, China Tire directed its broker to again change classification to tires that were for agriculture and forestry uses.

What followed were standard 19 USC § 1592 administrative penalty proceedings:

In July 2011, CBP issued a pre-penalty notice against China Tire and its executives John Cheng and Licheng Wang. In that notice, the complaint said, Wang and Cheng were held jointly and severally liable for 253 false entries, with a proposed penalty of nearly $8.1 million.

China Tire’s fraudulent entries cost CBP more than $404,000 in revenue, of which more than $242,000 is still unpaid, according to the complaint.

The current complaint proposes three alternative counts against China Tire, based on charges of fraud, gross negligence or negligence.

If found guilty of fraud, China Tire would face a penalty of nearly $16.9 million, plus the unpaid tariff balance. If found guilty of gross negligence, it would face a penalty of just over $1.6 million, plus the unpaid tariffs. If found guilty of negligence, it would face a penalty of $808,000, plus the unpaid tariffs.

A prior disclosure of the mis-classification would have potentially substantially reduced China Tires’ liability. If you face duty or penalty liability with customs you should contact our office by e-mail or call (734) 855-4999. We are experienced in defending customs 592 penalties, disclosing potential violations through prior disclosures, responding to notices of penalties, and preparing detailed and well argued petitions for mitigation of penalties or liquidated damages. You can also make use of our other articles, such as: