If you're an importer who paid tariffs under the now-overturned IEEPA (International Emergency Economic Powers Act) regime, you've probably been keeping a close eye on the refund process. The U.S. government started accepting claims this week, and up to $175 billion in duties could be heading back to businesses across the country. But before you rush to hand everything over to your customs broker, there's something you need to know.
Some of the largest customs brokerages are reportedly demanding 10% to 15% of any refund they help you recover-for doing very little actual work.
"They're Just Hitting 'Submit'"
The alarm was raised by Pete Mento, director of global trade advisory services at Baker Tilly, who took to LinkedIn to call out what he's been hearing "consistently" across the industry. According to Mento, some big-name brokerages are asking for a double-digit cut of recovered duties without offering much in return.
"Let's be clear," Mento wrote. "They are not auditing the entries. They are not identifying errors. They're not fixing declarations. They're not filing post-summary corrections. They're not preserving rights through protests. They're not preparing for CBP scrutiny. They are pulling entry data, putting it into a spreadsheet, and uploading it. That's it."
In other words, for a 10% to 15% slice of your refund, some brokers are essentially offering a data-entry service. The Loadstar reached out to multiple industry sources, and while not everyone had seen demands as high as 15%, several confirmed that requests for a 10% cut are definitely becoming a thing.
What Should a Customs Broker Actually Do?
A real customs brokerage service goes far beyond spreadsheet work. Licensed customs brokers are supposed to be your eyes and ears at the border-handling classification, documentation, compliance, and post-clearance support. That means auditing your entries, filing corrections when needed, preparing protests if customs gets it wrong, and standing behind the numbers until you actually get paid.
If a broker is taking a percentage of your recovery, you should be getting judgment, accountability, and someone who follows through-not just someone who clicks a button and walks away.
Where Xiamen AE Global Comes In
At Xiamen AE Global, we take a different approach. We're a government-licensed freight forwarder with IATA, FIATA, FMC, and NVOCC approvals, backed by more than ten years of experience in the freight and logistics industry. Our network spans over 100 overseas agents, and we handle everything from airfreight and ocean freight to customs clearance, warehousing, and project shipments.
When it comes to tariff refunds and duty drawback, we believe in doing the job properly. That means auditing your entries, identifying errors, filing post-summary corrections, and preparing the documentation needed to support your claim-not just uploading a CSV file and crossing our fingers. We also handle DDU, DDP, and EXW air freight services, so whether you're shipping from China to the U.S. or anywhere else in the world, we've got you covered.
Our philosophy is simple: professionalism, honesty, and sincerity. We don't believe in opportunistic pricing that takes advantage of market confusion. We believe in doing the work, getting results, and building long-term relationships with our clients.
A Few Things to Keep in Mind
If you're planning to file a tariff refund claim, here's what you should consider before signing anything:
- Ask what you're actually paying for. If a broker wants a percentage of your refund, find out exactly what services that covers. Are they auditing your entries? Filing corrections? Preparing for potential CBP scrutiny? If the answer is vague, that's a red flag.
- Check your ACE Portal access. To submit a refund claim through CBP's new CAPE (Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries) system, you'll need an ACE Secure Data Portal account. Importers of record and authorized brokers must have this in place before filing.
- Know what's eligible. Phase 1 of the refund process covers unliquidated entries and entries liquidated within the past 80 days. Not every entry qualifies, so make sure you understand where your shipments stand.
- Don't assume bigger is better. Just because a brokerage is large doesn't mean they're giving you the best value. Sometimes the biggest names are the ones charging the highest percentages for the least amount of work.
The Bottom Line
A 10% to 15% cut of your tariff refund might sound reasonable at first glance-until you realize what you're actually getting for that money. If all a broker is doing is pulling entry data and hitting "submit," that's not a service. That's a tax on your confusion.
At Xiamen AE Global, we believe in transparency, hard work, and doing things the right way. If you're looking for a logistics partner who actually understands customs clearance, tariff compliance, and the refund process-and who won't charge you an arm and a leg just to click a button-get in touch. We'd love to show you how it's supposed to be done.
