Do I need a licensed customs broker to file duty drawback?
Not if you file on your own account, but you must then file through a CBP-authorized electronic system yourself, which is why many claimants use a broker.
FAQ
Your broker or ours
A licensed customs broker, ours or yours, reviews every line and files. Your power of attorney stays directly with your broker.
- Filed by a licensed broker†
- Published fees, charged after CBP pays
- Sealed on AMD SEV-SNP
10 questions
Read the full answer
Who files my claim: your broker or mine?
You choose: your own licensed customs broker, or a NexQloud partner broker.
What does a duty drawback company do?
It finds the exports and destructions that match your duty-paid imports, gathers the evidence, prepares the claim and, if it holds a license, files it.
The detail
Preparing drawback claims for others is customs business, so a licensed broker must do that work or supervise it.
Some providers are brokerages; others supply software that brokers use.
Also asked
- What does a duty drawback provider do?
How do I choose a duty drawback company?
Ask any provider, us included, eight questions before you sign.
What questions should I ask a customs broker?
Ask for its license number and who will review your claims.
The detail
Also ask whether it files drawback through ABI today; whether it needs your written consent to share your records, as the rules require; how it would report a data breach to CBP within 72 hours; what it charges, and when; and how it sequences IEEPA entries with CAPE.
How is NexQloud Drawback different from other drawback providers?
We work through your broker or ours instead of replacing it, we publish the fees, and you can choose Sealed processing.
The detail
After launch, you can sign up and upload without a call; until then, try the demo with sample data.
Every claim line names its entry, its export and its source document.
Do I need to switch from my current drawback provider?
No. If your broker files drawback today, it can file on our software, and you keep it.
The detail
If another provider has claims in progress, let them finish, and tell us which entries are already claimed so nothing is claimed twice.
You can start with a new period, or with entries no one has claimed yet.
Who holds my power of attorney?
Your broker, signed directly with you.
CBP requires the broker's power of attorney to come directly from the importer of record or drawback claimant, and a platform "may not act as an intermediary."
The detail
Your broker sends its own (CBP Form 5291 or an equivalent) and keeps it in its records; it isn't filed with CBP.
We never collect or relay it.
What does my broker see in Sealed and Standard mode?
In both modes, your broker sees the claim package, the CSV and the evidence for each line it approves.
The detail
In Sealed mode, source documents reach it only through a disclosure path you authorize, document by document.
In Standard mode, it can also open your source documents in its review queue.
Your broker must keep your records confidential unless you consent in writing.
- 19 CFR 111.24[4]
Does NexQloud Drawback provide legal services?
No. We don't give legal advice, file protests or bring cases, and we're not a government agency.
The detail
Bring in trade counsel when a claim is disputed or denied, when CBP raises penalties or questions a claim's accuracy, when you're weighing a court case over IEEPA refunds, or when a contract decides who keeps a refund.
False drawback claims carry penalties.
- 19 U.S.C. 1593a[8]
Also asked
- When should a small business involve counsel?
- What are the main legal issues a small business should evaluate?
Editorial
Sources and changes
Written by the NexQloud Drawback team from the primary sources linked on this page.
Change log
- First published.
Not legal advice. NexQloud Drawback is not a government agency.
NexQloud Drawback is software used by licensed customs brokers.
Get started
Read less. Run the demo.
Run the demo on a sample file. About three minutes.
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01
Upload one quarter.
Entry summaries, invoices and export records.
WhoYou
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02
AI drafts your claim.
It ties each export to its import, to the cent.
WhoThe agent
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03
Your broker files. CBP pays you.
The refund goes directly to your bank account.
WhoA licensed broker
Your email and name open the demo. We never ask for your ACE login or bank details.
Ready now? Start a claimIEEPA refunds
Got your IEEPA refund? Drawback is the one that repeats.
We check every entry for CAPE first, the order CBP recommends.[9] Drawback can recur every year.
Which tariffs qualify?
For partners
Be the firm that finds your clients a second refund.
Brokers earn the drawback fee. CPA firms bill their own work. Refund firms keep their CAPE clients. Design partners help shape it before launch.
Apply to partner
No fee to apply. We reply within 2 business days.
What is duty drawback?
A refund of up to 99% of the duties, taxes and fees you paid on imports that you later export or destroy, or that went into products you export.[13] It works in any industry.
When can I start?
We open to importers in waves, in the order of the waitlist. The demo shows the whole product with sample data today, and partners can apply now.
What will you need from me?
One quarter of records to start: entry summaries, invoices, packing lists, shipping documents, and export, return or destruction records.
How long until CBP pays?
With accelerated payment, CBP can pay before the claim is final. Its only published timing, from December 2018: processing "will generally take place within 3 weeks of the claim resubmission date."[14]
Can I use my own customs broker?
Yes. Invite your own broker, or use one we name before you sign. Your POA stays with your broker, and your broker sets its own fee.
What if CBP pays less than claimed?
The fee follows what CBP actually pays. If CBP later recovers part of a payment, the fee is reduced to match.
Do you file CAPE claims?
No. We check every entry for CAPE first and flag what belongs there. You or your broker files CAPE. Refund firms work through one of you.