PETITIONARY RELIEF FROM FINES, PENALTIES & FOREFEITURES FROM U.S. CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION
U.S. Customs sent me a “Prepenalty Notice.” What does this mean for me and my business?
Receiving a prepenalty notice means that an Officer of the Fines, Penalties, and Forefeitures Division has reason to believe that an additional investigation of your import (or export) entry is required and that U.S. Customs should claim a monetary penalty against you or your business for a violation of the law(s).Upon receipt of this notice, the importer typically has thirty (30) days to respond to these allegations and justify why the penalty should be not be issued, or the amount of the fine be reduced.
I already received a “Penalty Notice.” What are my options now?
You, as the importer, may either pay the fine promptly within thirty (30) days of the mailing of the notice or you will have sixty (60) days to file a “Petition for Relief.” This petition is composed up of a written request stating the circumstances as to why the penalty should be mitigated or at least reduced in amount.If the petition is successful, the importer will have sixty (60) days to pay the new amount, if necessary. If the importer stil believes that the reduced amount is unsatisfactory, you may file a suppletmental petition for relief within sixty (60) days of the notice of the decision on the first petition.
The fine or penalty is still too high and I cannot pay it at all.
You, as the importer, may make an offer to compromise with the U.S. government by stating so in writing AND depositing your offer with a bank branch of the Federal Reserve. If your offer is rejected, then your offer will be returned back to you.
I want to avoid all of this by disclosing that I made a mistake on my import/export entry before any notice is sent out to me.
If you disclose a problem or mistake with your entry early and properly, U.S. Customs is supposed to impose reduced fines or no fines, depending on the type of violation. Either way, when a prior disclosure is made, U.S. Customs is prohibited from seizing your goods after disclosure.