# Antidumping and Countervailing Duties: The Cash Deposit Trap

Source: https://clearborderhq.com/blog/2026-11-14-antidumping-countervailing-duties.html

Cross-border operations guide · November 14, 2026


**Short answer:** Antidumping and countervailing duties are extra duties on specific products from specific countries, and the rate you pay at entry is only a cash deposit, not the final assessment. Commerce sets the margin, the USITC decides whether US industry was injured, and CBP collects. The final duty is set later in an administrative review, and it can be higher, lower, or the same as the deposit, which is why importers get retroactive bills years after the shipment cleared.

## Two duties, two different problems

Antidumping and countervailing duties are the sniper rounds of trade law: one product, from one country, where the government has decided someone is playing unfair. Antidumping duties address price: a foreign producer selling goods in the United States at less than fair value, meaning below the price in its home market or below the cost to produce them. Countervailing duties address money: a foreign government handing a producer a leg up through grants, preferential loans, tax breaks, or below-market land and power. The duty offsets the margin in the first case and the subsidy in the second, and a product can be subject to both at once.

Three agencies run the system, and knowing who does what tells you where a problem can arise. The Commerce Department's International Trade Administration determines whether dumping or subsidization exists and calculates the margin or subsidy rate. The U.S. International Trade Commission determines whether the imports cause material injury to a U.S. industry. CBP collects the duties at the border. An order is issued only if both Commerce finds dumping or subsidization and the USITC finds material injury. A negative finding from either one ends the case.

## The retrospective trap

The single most important thing to understand about U.S. antidumping law is that the rate you pay at entry is an estimate. The United States uses a retrospective assessment system: the AD/CVD you pay at entry is a cash deposit at an estimated rate, not the final bill. The final duty is set later, when Commerce conducts an administrative review of entries over a past period, usually annually, and the review takes 12 to 18 months after the review period ends. If the reviewed rate is higher than your deposit, you owe the difference plus interest. If it is lower, you may get money back.

The timeline is what catches importers. From petition to a permanent order takes 12 to 18 months. Commerce opens a properly filed case within about 20 days, a preliminary margin shows up roughly 140 days in, and CBP starts collecting cash deposits the day it is published, before anyone knows the final number. If imports have surged, the deposit date can be moved back 90 days before the preliminary determination. And the rates can be enormous: AD/CVD duties can add 30 percent, 100 percent, or even 500 percent to the cost of goods, and they stack on top of ordinary tariffs, Section 301, and Section 232 duties.

## What to check before you buy

Check the order before the purchase order, not after the shipment. Open the ITA's ACCESS system at access.trade.gov, run the AD/CVD search filtered by your HTS code and country of origin, and confirm whether an order is active and what rate applies to your specific manufacturer, because rates vary by company and by year. A producer who answers Commerce's questionnaires gets a lower individualized number. A producer who ignores the investigation gets the China-wide rate by default, and that rate is the one that ruins a landed cost model.

And watch for evasion. Under the Enforce and Protect Act of 2015, CBP investigates allegations that an importer evaded an AD/CVD order, for example by transshipping goods through a third country or misdescribing them. EAPA investigations can lead to retroactive duties, withheld liquidation, and penalties, and they are increasingly common. The broker's line still holds: confirm current status with a licensed customs broker before a sourcing decision. For the classification side of the same shipment, [how apparel HTS codes turn on fiber content](https://clearborderhq.com/blog/2026-11-13-apparel-hts-fiber-content-duty.md) shows why the code matters before the duty, and [broker versus self-filing](https://clearborderhq.com/blog/2026-11-13-customs-broker-vs-self-filing-entry.md) covers who should be making the entry in the first place.

## Frequently asked questions

### What is the difference between antidumping and countervailing duties?

Antidumping duties offset foreign goods sold below fair value, below the home-market price or below cost. Countervailing duties offset foreign government subsidies, like grants, cheap loans, or tax breaks. A product can be subject to both at once.

### Is the AD/CVD rate I pay at entry the final duty?

No. It is a cash deposit at an estimated rate. The final duty is set later in an administrative review, usually annually, and can be higher, lower, or the same as the deposit. If it is higher, you owe the difference plus interest, sometimes years after the shipment cleared.

### Who decides whether an AD/CVD order is issued?

Two agencies. Commerce determines whether dumping or subsidization exists and calculates the rate. The USITC determines whether US industry was materially injured. Both must reach affirmative findings, and CBP collects the duties.

### How do I check if my product is subject to an AD/CVD order?

Search the ITA's ACCESS system at access.trade.gov, filtered by your HTS code and country of origin. Confirm the order is still active and which rate applies to your specific manufacturer, because rates vary by company and the China-wide default rate is usually the highest.