How it works
From your entry records to a finding you can review.
DutyRecoverAI works in four phases. It reads the entry data you provide, runs the detectors on your plan, and builds each potential finding with its calculation and, where they apply, its evidence and deadline. Then a person decides. DutyRecoverAI never files.
Recovery Scan: 5 questions · no data upload · a modeled estimate, not an audit
Why a second reading
The questions a customs manager actually gets asked.
| Question | Manual reality | With DutyRecoverAI |
|---|---|---|
| Who checks whether you overpaid? | Review the entry and supporting documents. | Each entry is re-read by the detectors on your plan, against the rules in force on its entry date. |
| Who answers when CBP asks? | A scramble through folders and email. | Each finding shows its detection reason, confidence and estimated opportunity, with calculations, evidence requirements, deadlines and next actions shown where applicable. |
| When does the protest window close? | Check the liquidation notice and applicable deadline. | Tracked per entry. The 180-day window is surfaced well before it lapses. |
Phase 1 · Provide records
Your records, read as you supplied them.
Workflow states in this phase: 01 Entry
You upload a CSV export of your customs entries, up to 50 MB. DutyRecoverAI suggests which column holds each field; you review that mapping, and the required fields are checked before anything is imported. The file itself is kept in private storage, and each row becomes an entry record.
- What the product produces
- IngestedEntry data has been received. Receipt alone does not establish eligibility.NormalizedSource fields are mapped into an entry record for analysis.
- What you can verify
- The column mapping before import, and data-quality flags on rows that look wrong, such as a future entry date or duty paid above the dutiable value.
- What still needs review
- Whether your records are complete. The analysis reads only what you provide; nothing is pulled from CBP on your behalf. How your data is protected
As supplied
Ingested5AB-0294177-12024-03-148471.30.0100CN252660.0084220.00
Suggested column mapping
Normalized- Column 1 Entry number
- 5AB-0294177-1
- Column 2 Entry date
- 14 MAR 2024
- Column 3 Declared HTS
- 8471.30.0100
- Column 4 Country of origin
- CN
- Column 5 Entered value
- $252,660.00
- Column 6 Duty paid
- $84,220.00
Phase 2 · Analyze
Each entry, read by every detector on your plan.
Workflow states in this phase: 02 Analysis03 Cross-reference
After import, the detectors on your plan run over your entries on their own. Each asks a different question of the same record. A signal is then cross-referenced against the rule it depends on; for a Section 301 exclusion, against the exclusions in force on the entry date.
- What the product produces
- AnalyzedEnabled detectors have examined the available entry data.UnscoredA missing result is not confirmation that no opportunity exists.
- What you can verify
- Which detectors ran, what each reads from your record, and, for a signal, the reference and the fields it was checked against.
- What still needs review
- Whether the rule actually covers your goods. A classification match is a signal, not a ruling; product scope and effective dates still need checking.
Detector passes · this entry
Analyzed- Section 301SignalCheck additional China duties against exclusion eligibility. Reads: Origin, HTS, entry date, duty rate, liquidation date.
- Duty DrawbackNo sample match shownFollow duty-paid goods through export or destruction. Reads: HTS, duty paid and rate, entry date, and similar entries.
- FTA OriginNo sample match shownRevisit goods entered without a preferential duty claim. Reads: Origin, duty paid and rate, import date.
- Entry Error DetectionNo sample match shownFind inconsistencies in classification, value, quantity, or duty. Reads: Entry numbers, dutiable value, MPF and HMF, duty rate, origin.
- Protest MonitorNo sample match shownBring liquidation dates and protest windows into view. Reads: Liquidation date.
- A missing match does not rule out an opportunity.
Second reading · Section 301
Rule checkWas the additional duty applicable?
- Example reference
- 9903.88.67
- Cross-referenced
- 8471.30.0100 · CN · 14 MAR 2024
Detector access depends on your plan. The free plan runs Duty Drawback and Section 301 over a 90-day lookback; a plan’s lookback is separate from any legal filing window. Compare detector coverage
Phase 3 · Build the finding
A potential amount, with its basis, evidence and clock.
Workflow states in this phase: 04 Finding05 Evidence06 Deadline
When a detector signals, DutyRecoverAI assembles a finding: why it was flagged, a confidence level, and an estimated amount calculated from your entry’s own values, never estimated by the AI. Where they apply, the finding carries the documents its pathway needs and the filing window that governs it.
- What the product produces
- Needs reviewA finding requires a person to verify its assumptions and evidence.Evidence collectedDocument collection and review status remain separate checks before action.
- What you can verify
- The calculation line, the state of each evidence item (present, needs review, unavailable or pending), and the deadline with its citation.
- What still needs review
- Eligibility, and whether the missing evidence exists. Not every finding has every kind of supporting material, and an amount stays potential until a professional confirms it.
Potential finding
Potential only$252,660.00 × 25.0% equals
Amount to investigate$63,165.00
- Pathway
- Section 301
- Confidence
- Not scored in this example
Evidence
1 of 4 present- Source entryPresentRepresentative CBP 7501 entry fields.
- Exclusion referenceNeeds review9903.88.67 · Verify scope, classification, origin, and effective dates.
- Supporting documentsUnavailableOriginal supporting documents are not supplied with this illustration.
- Human reviewPendingA licensed broker or legal reviewer must assess the evidence and available route.
Recovery clock
Expired- Historical protest window
- 19 USC 1514(c)(3)
- Sample window
- Ended 29 JAN 2025
- Next action
- This historical illustration is not an open filing opportunity.
Evidence checklist · Section 301 case
- CBP Form 7501 (Entry Summary)
- Required
- Liquidation Notice
- Required
- Protest Argument (Legal Memo)
- Required
- Corrected HTS Classification & Duty Calculation
- Required
- Supporting USTR Notice or Ruling
- Required
- Product Specifications
- Required
- Broker Review Notes
- Optional
Filing windows by pathway
- Protest Monitor · Section 301 after liquidation
- 180 days from the liquidation date in your records (19 USC 1514(c)(3)).
- Duty Drawback
- 3 years (19 USC 1313(r)). The statute counts from export; with no export date in your records, the window shown is counted from the import date. Check it with your broker.
- FTA Origin
- 1 year from import (19 USC 1520(d)).
- Entry Error Detection
- No window is set. The correction route and its deadline are for you and your broker to establish.
Phase 4 · Review and act
A person decides. DutyRecoverAI never files.
Workflow states in this phase: 07 Review
A finding can become a recovery case: attach the evidence, track its review, and prepare material for your customs broker or counsel. DutyRecoverAI is not a customs broker, does not represent you before CBP, and never files.
- What the product produces
- A case with its review stage. Professional review is recorded only with an attestation, kept in the case history.
- What you can verify
- Who recorded each professional review, and when.
- What still needs review
- Everything before filing: eligibility, evidence, the deadline and the route. The decision to file, and the filing, stay with you and your broker.
Review stages · recovery case
- AI SuggestedWhere every case starts: the result of the analysis, not a review.
- Ready for Broker ReviewReview material has been prepared; no professional review is recorded.
- Broker ReviewedRecorded only with an attestation that a licensed customs broker reviewed the case.
- Legal ReviewedRecorded only with an attestation that an attorney reviewed the case.
- Client ApprovedMarked by your team.
- FiledMarked by your team after you and your broker file.
- RejectedMarked when a case will not go forward.
DutyRecoverAI
- Reads the entry data you provide
- Runs the detectors on your plan
- Calculates potential amounts from your values
- Shows evidence status and deadlines
- Prepares material for review
You and your broker or counsel
- Confirm eligibility and scope
- Gather and check the documents
- Establish the deadline and the route
- Decide whether to file, and file
Analysis & filing review notice
AI-generated analysis — requires broker and/or legal review before filing.
Do not file without verifying classification, origin, valuation, and supporting documentation.
This is not legal advice.
Rules and eligibility may change. Verify exclusion dates before filing.
Refund estimates are based on the data provided. Actual recovery amounts may differ.
Sources
What the analysis reads, and what stays with you.
Only the first group feeds the analysis. The second is reference material you or your broker check a finding against; DutyRecoverAI does not connect to it.
Read by the analysis
- Your entry records
- The CSV you upload: entry numbers and dates, HTS, origin, values, duties and fees, and liquidation dates. Every detector
- Section 301 exclusion reference
- A reference table of Section 301 exclusions by HTS, list and expiry, checked against each entry’s date. Section 301
- Trade agreement partners
- The agreements the FTA Origin detector recognizes by country of origin, including USMCA and KORUS. FTA Origin
- Statutory filing windows
- 19 USC 1514(c)(3), 1313(r) and 1520(d), used to put a deadline on a finding. Deadlines
For your review, not read by DutyRecoverAI
- CBP ACE
- Where entry and liquidation data are usually exported from. DutyRecoverAI does not connect to ACE.
- USITC Harmonized Tariff Schedule
- To check a classification and its duty rate.
- USTR exclusion notices
- To check an exclusion’s product scope and effective dates.
- CBP rules of origin
- To check that goods qualify under an agreement.
- Export records (AES/EEI filings, bills of lading)
- The export evidence a drawback claim needs. DutyRecoverAI does not read export data.
Your path from estimate to action
These are your steps, not a second process: the four phases above run when you verify with your own entry data.
- 01 · Estimate
Five questions about your import profile give a modeled range. No upload, no account.
- 02 · Verify
Request early access to analyze your actual entry data — the free plan covers Duty Drawback and Section 301 over a 90-day lookback.
- 03 · Review
Inspect each finding: why it was flagged, plus the source entry, documents, and deadline where they apply.
- 04 · Act
Take reviewed findings to your customs broker or counsel. Filing stays with you; DutyRecoverAI never files.
Ready to investigate potential recovery?
Request early access and we’ll personally help you get your first 90-day report running, free, with no credit card.
Human review before filing · No credit card required for early access