Importer Seeks Refund at CIT for Overpaid Duties Due to Customs Broker's Clerical Error

CBP unfairly denied importer Compressed Air Systems' protest showing that it overpaid duties and fees for its air compressor and vacuum pump part entries, CAS argued in its Dec. 7 complaint at the Court of International Trade. Due to a clerical error committed by the customs broker, the entries were overvalued, CAS said. CBP then refused to fix the error after the importer protested CBP's liquidation of the entries, leading the company to file suit with the trade court (Compressed Air Systems, LLC v. CBP, CIT #21-00615).

CAS imported the air compressor and vacuum pump parts from China, with the imports valued at over $117,000. However, the entry writer for customs broker Perimeter International erred when entering the value of the merchandise, the complaint said. This resulted in the merchandise being valued at over $254,000. In particular, the entry writer, Lisa Dilley, incorrectly entered the values in Lines 001, 003 and 004 of Form 7501. As a result, CAS paid more in Merchandise Processing Fee, Harbor Maintenance Fee and Section 301 tariffs, overpaying by nearly $35,000, the complaint said.

When CAS protested the liquidation decision for the entries, CBP denied the protest, claiming that there was insufficient documentation to substantiate the importer's claim. However, CAS said that it submitted its protest with its commercial invoice, pro forma invoice, packing list, bill or lading, original and revised Form 7501, all of which were submitted in person to the port director. These documents "unequivocally prove" the correct value of the merchandise and show that the protest should be approved, the complaint said.