AD/CVD is scope-driven
A case can mention HTS codes for customs convenience while legal scope depends on product descriptions and Commerce records.
The HTS code is "for convenience" — and one order can name codes in three different chapters
Every AD/CVD order closes its scope paragraph with the same sentence, and it is the reason no lookup tool can answer an AD/CVD question from a code. The antidumping duty order on lattice boom crawler cranes from Japan, published July 23, 2026 (91 FR 46397, FR Doc 2026-14950), says subject merchandise is "typically classifiable under subheadings 8426.49.0010 and 8426.49.0090" but that assemblies "may also be classified under subheadings 8426.49.0010 or 8426.49.0090, or may be classified under subheadings 8431.49.1090, 8431.49.1060, or 8425.19.0000 of the HTSUS" — five subheadings spread across headings 8425, 8426, and 8431 — and then states: "While the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the merchandise under order is dispositive." The same order also reaches merchandise assembled in a third country: processing or completion "either in the subject country or in a third country does not remove the product from the scope." So the mapping runs both ways and neither direction is reliable — one order covers many codes, and a code covered by an order still carries no duty if your product falls outside the written scope.
Seven stages, and only some of them cost you money at entry
The single most useful thing to know about an AD/CVD case is not its rate but its stage, because the stage determines whether CBP suspends liquidation of your entry and demands a cash deposit. Initiation does not: the notice initiating the less-than-fair-value investigation of choline salts from China (FR Doc 2026-14518, July 20, 2026) sets no deposit and instead notes that the ITC "will preliminarily determine, within 45 days after the date on which the Petition was filed," whether there is a reasonable indication of injury, and that a negative ITC determination terminates the investigation. A preliminary affirmative determination does: in the countervailing duty preliminary on certain fatty acids from Indonesia (FR Doc 2026-14871, July 23, 2026), Commerce directs CBP "to suspend liquidation of entries of subject merchandise … entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication of this notice," with a deposit at the company-specific or all-others rate. The reference table below maps all seven stages to a live 2026 case.
Provisional measures can lapse — and leave a duty-free window
Suspension of liquidation from a preliminary determination is time-limited. Under section 733(d) of the Act it "may not remain in effect for more than four months," extendable to six at the request of exporters accounting for a significant proportion of exports. When the extended window closes before the ITC's final injury determination publishes, entries in the gap are liquidated without antidumping duties. That happened in the crawler-cranes case: the six-month period ran from January 16, 2026 to July 15, 2026, the ITC final published July 20, 2026, and Commerce will instruct CBP "to terminate the suspension of liquidation and to liquidate, without regard to antidumping duties," entries made on or after July 15, 2026 through July 19, 2026 — a five-day duty-free window inside an otherwise dutiable case. Deposits resumed on the date the ITC final published. This is why an entry date, not a case name, decides the outcome.
The cash deposit is an estimate; assessment happens years later
AD/CVD is a retrospective system. What you pay at entry is a deposit; what you finally owe is set in an administrative review of the period your entry fell into, and CBP bills or refunds the difference. The gap is measured in years: the preliminary results of the antidumping administrative review on carbon and alloy steel cut-to-length plate from France published July 21, 2026 (FR Doc 2026-14628) cover a period of review of May 1, 2024 through April 30, 2025. Commerce says CBP "shall assess, antidumping duties on all appropriate entries of subject merchandise in accordance with the final results of this review," using importer-specific assessment rates, with de minimis defined as less than 0.50 percent. An importer who treated the 2024 deposit rate as the final cost had an open liability for more than two years.
How to use the signal
Use the flag to start a broker or counsel review before filing, not as a final rate calculation.
AD/CVD proceeding stages: what each one instructs CBP to do to your entry
| Stage | Effect on liquidation and cash deposit | Live 2026 example (Federal Register) |
|---|---|---|
| Initiation of investigation | No suspension of liquidation, no cash deposit. The ITC preliminarily determines injury within 45 days of the petition filing; a negative determination terminates the case. | Certain Choline Salts from China — Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation, FR Doc 2026-14518 (July 20, 2026) |
| Preliminary affirmative determination | Suspension of liquidation begins for entries made on or after the notice's publication date; cash deposit at the company-specific or all-others rate. | Certain Fatty Acids from Indonesia — Preliminary Affirmative CVD Determination, FR Doc 2026-14871 (July 23, 2026) |
| Final affirmative determination | Rates are finalized, but the order does not exist until the ITC's final injury determination publishes. | L-Lysine from China — Final Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value, FR Doc 2026-14951 (July 23, 2026) |
| Order | Suspension of liquidation continues "until further notice"; deposits at the final weighted-average margins, effective on publication of the ITC's final affirmative injury determination. Any provisional-measures gap is liquidated without duties. | Lattice Boom Crawler Cranes from Japan — Antidumping Duty Order, FR Doc 2026-14950 (July 23, 2026); margins 12.36% / 20.00% / 16.18% all-others |
| Administrative review | Sets the final assessed duty for a past period of review and the going-forward deposit rate. CBP assesses importer-specific rates on entries already made; de minimis is under 0.50%. | Cut-to-Length Plate from France — Preliminary Results, POR May 1, 2024–April 30, 2025, FR Doc 2026-14628 (July 21, 2026) |
| Circumvention inquiry | Can extend suspension and deposits to merchandise not previously suspended, back to the date the initiation notice published, under 19 CFR 351.226(l). | Certain Alkyl Phosphate Esters from China — Initiation of Circumvention Inquiry, FR Doc 2026-14828 (July 23, 2026) |
| Sunset review / continuation | Orders continue for another five years; CBP "will continue to collect AD and CVD cash deposits at the rates in effect at the time of entry." | Certain Passenger Vehicle and Light Truck Tires from China — Continuation of AD and CVD Orders effective July 7, 2026, FR Doc 2026-14293 (July 16, 2026) |
Every example is a Federal Register notice published between July 16 and July 23, 2026, read in full text on July 23, 2026. Stage — not rate — determines whether an entry is suspended and a deposit is owed. Case-specific outcomes always depend on the written scope, the producer/exporter, and the entry date; confirm any entry against the notice and your broker before filing.
Read the stage first, then the scope, then the producer/exporter. A rate you find without checking all three is not your rate.
FAQ
Why not calculate AD/CVD rates automatically?
Because a false precise answer can be worse than uncertainty. Scope and producer/exporter facts need review.
Can I tell whether my HTS code is subject to an AD/CVD order?
Not from the code alone. Every order states that the HTSUS subheadings are "provided for convenience and customs purposes" and that "the written description of the merchandise under order is dispositive." The July 23, 2026 order on lattice boom crawler cranes from Japan (FR Doc 2026-14950) names five subheadings across headings 8425, 8426, and 8431 for a single order — so a code can appear in several orders, and merchandise under an order can enter under a code the order never lists. Use the code to find candidate cases, then read the scope paragraph.
When does an AD/CVD case start costing me money at entry?
At the preliminary affirmative determination, not at initiation. An initiation notice sets no deposit — the ITC first has 45 days from the petition filing to make its preliminary injury finding. A preliminary affirmative determination directs CBP to suspend liquidation of entries made on or after the notice's publication date and to collect a cash deposit. See the July 23, 2026 preliminary CVD determination on certain fatty acids from Indonesia (FR Doc 2026-14871).
Is the cash deposit I pay the final antidumping duty?
No. AD/CVD is retrospective: the deposit is an estimate, and the final duty is set in an administrative review covering the period your entry fell into, after which CBP assesses the difference. The lag is routinely more than a year — the preliminary results published July 21, 2026 for cut-to-length plate from France (FR Doc 2026-14628) cover entries from May 1, 2024 through April 30, 2025.
Can an AD/CVD order reach goods finished in a third country?
Yes, through two separate mechanisms. Scope language itself can cover it — the crawler-cranes order states that processing or completion "either in the subject country or in a third country does not remove the product from the scope." Separately, a circumvention inquiry under 19 CFR 351.226 can extend suspension of liquidation and cash deposits to merchandise not previously suspended, retroactive to the date the initiation notice published. Commerce initiated one on July 23, 2026 covering spray-foam products from Canada under the alkyl phosphate esters orders (FR Doc 2026-14828).
Do AD/CVD duties replace my regular tariff or Section 301 duty?
No. They are assessed in addition to the Column 1 duty rate and to any Chapter 99 additional duty such as Section 301 or Section 232. Treat AD/CVD as a separate layer on top of the landed-cost estimate, not as a substitute rate.
Sources verified for this guide
- CBP: Antidumping and Countervailing Duties (AD/CVD) FAQ (retrieved Jun 7, 2026)
- U.S. Department of Commerce: U.S. Antidumping and Countervailing Duties (retrieved Jun 7, 2026)
- Commerce ACCESS — AD/CVD case records and scope filings (retrieved Jun 7, 2026)
- USITC: Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Handbook (retrieved Jun 7, 2026)
- Federal Register, FR Doc 2026-14950 — Lattice Boom Crawler Cranes From Japan: Antidumping Duty Order (July 23, 2026); source of the "written description … is dispositive" scope rule, the five HTSUS subheadings, and the July 15–19, 2026 provisional-measures gap (retrieved Jul 23, 2026)
- Federal Register, FR Doc 2026-14871 — Certain Fatty Acids From Indonesia: Preliminary Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination (July 23, 2026); source of the suspension-of-liquidation and cash-deposit instruction at the preliminary stage (retrieved Jul 23, 2026)
- Federal Register, FR Doc 2026-14518 — Certain Choline Salts From the People's Republic of China: Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation (July 20, 2026); source of the 45-day ITC preliminary-injury deadline and the no-deposit-at-initiation rule (retrieved Jul 23, 2026)
- Federal Register, FR Doc 2026-14628 — Certain Carbon and Alloy Steel Cut-to-Length Plate From France: Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review, POR May 1, 2024–April 30, 2025 (July 21, 2026); source of the retrospective-assessment and 0.50% de minimis facts (retrieved Jul 23, 2026)
- Federal Register, FR Doc 2026-14828 — Certain Alkyl Phosphate Esters From China: Initiation of Circumvention Inquiry (July 23, 2026); source of the 19 CFR 351.226(l) retroactive suspension mechanics (retrieved Jul 23, 2026)
- Federal Register, FR Doc 2026-14293 — Certain Passenger Vehicle and Light Truck Tires From China: Continuation of Antidumping Duty Order and Countervailing Duty Order, effective July 7, 2026 (July 16, 2026); source of the sunset-continuation deposit rule (retrieved Jul 23, 2026)
Last verified: Jul 23, 2026. The program rules, review windows, Chapter 99 references, and monitoring caveats above were checked against the cited official sources on that date. Always confirm the controlling source text for your specific code and entry date before filing or sourcing decisions.
Use this guide with a saved code
The safest workflow is to pair the concept in this guide with a concrete HTS code, country of origin, supplier facts, and planned entry date. That keeps the discussion anchored in official source text instead of generic tariff commentary.
When a saved-code alert fires, use the guide to decide which question to ask first: whether the HTS code is still appropriate, whether a trade-remedy overlay applies, whether an exclusion or preference program changes treatment, or whether the issue needs broker review before filing.