What Are Antidumping and Countervailing Duties?

Antidumping duties are assessed on imports sold in the United States at less than fair value — in other words, below the price charged in the home market of the exporting country. Countervailing duties address imports that benefit from foreign government subsidies that give them an unfair price advantage over domestic producers. Both types of duties are imposed through orders issued by the Department of Commerce following trade remedy investigations initiated by U.S. industry petitioners.

AD/CVD orders describe the merchandise they cover through a “scope” — a written description of the products subject to additional duties. The scope determines whether a particular product is covered. Products within the scope are subject to potentially substantial additional duties on top of the standard tariff rate. Products outside the scope are not — but making that determination is not always straightforward, and CBP does not always get it right.

Scope Ruling Requests

A scope ruling request is filed with the International Trade Administration seeking clarification or confirmation as to whether merchandise that you import — or want to import — will be subject to additional duties under an antidumping or countervailing duty order. A scope ruling from the ITA is the definitive answer on whether a product falls within the scope of an AD/CVD order.

A scope ruling request takes the form of an analysis and argument as to why the merchandise should not be subject to the antidumping or countervailing duties. It relies on the text of the scope of the AD/CVD order that might apply, and an analysis — a compare and contrast — of scope rulings already issued by the ITA for similar merchandise imported by other parties. The petition that started the AD/CVD investigation may also file comments in response to the scope request, which is why the quality of the legal argumentation matters.

Cases Where We Have Obtained Favorable Scope Rulings

We have successfully obtained favorable scope rulings for clients in a number of product categories, including aluminum extrusions, raw flexible magnet investigations, and certain passenger vehicle and light truck tires — product categories with active AD/CVD orders that generate significant scope disputes. Each ruling required detailed product analysis, legal argumentation grounded in prior ITA scope decisions, and close attention to the language of the applicable order.

Timeline

A scope ruling request can be decided in as little as 45 days, or the process can extend for months depending on the complexity of the issues, the thoroughness of the application, and the comments filed by other interested parties — particularly the petitioner who initiated the underlying AD/CVD investigation. A well-prepared, thoroughly documented request typically moves faster and receives better results than a bare-bones submission.

Changed Circumstances Reviews

Occasionally a product is within the scope of an AD/CVD order and subject to additional duties — but circumstances have changed since the order was issued in a way that makes continued coverage inappropriate. A Changed Circumstances Review is a formal process through which the scope of an existing order can be modified to reflect those changed circumstances.

In certain cases, where the original petitioner and other interested parties agree, a Changed Circumstances Review can result in a modification of the scope order to allow products that were previously subject to AD/CVD duties to become exempt. This is a more collaborative — and less adversarial — process than a contested scope ruling, but it requires that the changed circumstances are genuine and documentable, and that the petitioner is willing to support or at least not oppose the modification.

Protests and Offers in Compromise of AD/CVD Duties

If you have discovered that goods you imported are claimed to be subject to antidumping or countervailing duties, the options available to you depend primarily on where the entries are in the liquidation process and how much time has passed since liquidation occurred.

1. Goods Not Yet Liquidated — Scope Ruling or CF-28 Response If your entries have not yet been liquidated and CBP has issued a CF-28 or CF-29 regarding AD/CVD applicability, you may be able to file a scope ruling request with the ITA and ask CBP to suspend its determination pending the outcome. This is the best-case scenario — it preserves the most options and allows a definitive answer from Commerce before any final duty assessment is made.
2. Liquidated Within 180 Days — File a Protest If no more than 180 days have passed since the goods were liquidated, a protest can be filed challenging the applicability of AD/CVD duties to the liquidated entries. The protest must specifically identify the legal basis for challenging the AD/CVD assessment — typically an argument that the merchandise is outside the scope of the applicable order. If the protest is denied, the importer has 180 days to file a summons at the Court of International Trade.
3. Liquidated More Than 180 Days Ago — Offer in Compromise If the protest window has closed and you are receiving billing notices from CBP’s Finance Center in Indianapolis, the most viable remaining option is typically an Offer in Compromise. An OIC is a settlement proposal offering to pay a lesser amount based on doubtful liability, doubtful collectability, or both. AD/CVD cases are among the most common — and most compelling — factual bases for an OIC based on doubtful collectability, particularly when the assessed duties far exceed what the importer can pay.

Which Path Is Right for Your Situation?

The right approach to an AD/CVD problem depends on where your entries are in the process. The table below provides a general framework — but every situation is different, and the specific facts of your entries, the applicable order, and the timeline all affect which options remain open.