Most importers assume the duty they paid was the duty they owed. Often it was not. Here are the five most common sources of overpayment, and how each one becomes a refund.
1. HTS misclassification
Similar products can sit under very different HTS codes with very different rates. A single wrong digit can mean paying several percentage points more than necessary. Reclassifying correctly, and reclaiming the difference on past entries, is one of the most common recoveries.
2. Missed Section 301 exclusions
The USTR granted product exclusions that removed specific China-origin goods from the 25 percent Section 301 tariff for defined windows. Importers entitled to an exclusion who never claimed it simply overpaid. Those duties are recoverable.
3. IEEPA duties that became refundable
Following the February 2026 Supreme Court ruling, duties collected under certain IEEPA tariff actions became recoverable. Many importers paid these without realizing the legal basis would later shift.
4. Duty drawback on exported goods
If you imported goods and later exported them or the products made from them, duty drawback can return a large share of the duties you paid. It is underused because it is administratively involved.
5. Post-summary corrections never filed
When an entry is filed with an error, a post-summary correction fixes it and can recover the overpayment. Plenty of correctable entries never get corrected because no one circles back.
The common thread is that recovering any of these requires pulling your ACE entry data, isolating the recoverable portion, and filing with CBP. Tarisol connects you with specialists who do exactly that, on a success-based basis. Start with a free eligibility check to see which of these apply to you.