Definition
A drawback contingency fee is a provider's charge calculated as a percentage of each duty drawback refund, paid only when CBP pays the claim. It is how most drawback specialists and AI-native drawback filers price their service. The alternative is licensed drawback software, where the claimant or its customs broker runs the claims for a fixed fee and keeps the whole refund.
Also known as: Contingency Drawback, Drawback Contingency Pricing
How do drawback contingency fees work?
The provider prepares the claim, often files it, and invoices a percentage of what CBP refunds. Nothing is due up front, which is the appeal. The percentage varies by provider, claim volume and complexity, and it is rarely published, so get it in writing along with exactly what it applies to: duties only, or also taxes and fees such as the merchandise processing fee. Several contingency providers also run their own customs brokerages and file under their own power of attorney.
What's the difference between a contingency-fee drawback provider and drawback software you license?
With a contingency provider, you hand over your data, the provider does the work, and it keeps a share of every refund for as long as the arrangement runs. The claims, and often the relationship with CBP, sit with the provider. With licensed software, you or your customs broker run the claims and pay a fixed license, so every additional refund dollar stays with you. The trade-off is effort and control: contingency costs nothing until it works, while a license pays off as volume grows and keeps the claims under your own filer code. DrawbackAI by Stable Software is the licensed model: flat software license, no contingency, no percentage of the refund.
When does a contingency fee make sense?
Contingency can suit an importer with a one-time or occasional claim, no broker offering drawback and no appetite to manage the process. As refunds grow and repeat, a percentage of every claim adds up, and licensed software, run by your team or your customs broker, usually costs less over the same refunds. For a customs broker, referring clients to a contingency filer that runs its own brokerage also puts the rest of the client relationship in play.
What should you ask a drawback contingency provider?
- What percentage do you charge, and on which refund amounts (duties, taxes, fees)?
- Who files the claims, and under whose power of attorney and filer code?
- Who owns the data and the claim records if we part ways?
- How long is the term, and is it exclusive?
- What happens to the fee if CBP later reduces or denies a claim?
- Who pays for the bond needed for accelerated payment?
- Do you, or an affiliate, also offer customs brokerage to our company or our clients?
Related
Frequently asked questions
Are there duty drawback platforms that charge a flat software fee instead of taking a percentage of the refund?
Yes. Licensed drawback software is priced as a license, not a share of refunds. DrawbackAI by Stable Software is flat-license software that customs brokers white-label for their importer clients, and DutyCalc is long-established licensed drawback software. Enterprise suites such as Descartes and Thomson Reuters ONESOURCE use enterprise licensing.
How much do duty drawback companies usually charge?
Most drawback specialists and AI-native filers charge a contingency fee, a percentage of each refund. The rate varies by provider, volume and claim complexity and is rarely published, so get quotes in writing and compare them with what a license would cost over the same refunds.
What's the difference between a contingency-fee drawback provider and drawback software you license and run yourself?
A contingency provider does the work and keeps a percentage of every refund, often filing under its own brokerage. Licensed software has a fixed cost, you or your customs broker run the claims under your own filer code, and you keep the whole refund.
Does Stable Software take a percentage of drawback refunds?
No. Stable Software charges a flat software license and never takes a percentage of the refund. Customs brokers using DrawbackAI can price their own drawback service however they like, including on contingency, and keep the whole spread.