Automotive is the most duty-burdened manufacturing sector in the United States. Imported vehicles face 25% Section 232 tariffs, steel and aluminum inputs face an additional 25% under the same authority, and IEEPA tariffs layer on top for goods sourced from affected countries. Every duty paid on imported components, raw materials, or vehicles that are later exported (or used in exported vehicles) is potentially recoverable through duty drawback. For automotive OEMs, tier suppliers, and EV manufacturers, the addressable refund pool is among the largest in any sector.

Yes. Manufacturing Drawback (19 USC §1313(a) and §1313(b)) covers imported components used in manufacturing finished goods that are later exported. For automotive manufacturers, this means duties paid on imported steel, aluminum, electronics, batteries, and tier-supplier parts can be recovered when the finished vehicles are exported. Substitution Drawback expands this further. Commercially interchangeable substitutes can qualify even when the specific imported units aren't physically traced into the exported vehicle.

Section 232 tariffs on steel, aluminum, and vehicles are recoverable under drawback when the underlying goods are exported. The higher the tariff rate, the larger the potential refund. Section 232's 25% rates make automotive drawback claims substantially larger than they would be under MFN rates alone. Caspian's Trade Audit scans Section 232 entries specifically and calculates recoverable amounts across the full duty stack.

Same Condition Drawback applies when imported goods are exported to USMCA partner countries (Canada and Mexico) in the same condition they were imported in. For automotive manufacturers with cross-border supply chains, which is most of them, this is a meaningful pathway, especially for parts and components that move across the U.S.-Mexico or U.S.-Canada border multiple times during production.

Yes. Tier-1, tier-2, and tier-3 suppliers all have drawback eligibility on imported inputs that flow into exported vehicles or vehicle components. The recovery mechanics are identical to OEM drawback; the difference is documentation. Tier suppliers need to demonstrate the import-export linkage through their customers' export records, which is exactly the kind of multi-system reconciliation Caspian's platform is built to handle.

Significantly. Automotive products span multiple HTS chapters — vehicles (Chapter 87), parts (also Chapter 87), electronics (Chapter 85), steel and aluminum (Chapters 72–76), and batteries (Chapter 85). Misclassification across this range is common and costly, especially when a part could fall under multiple codes with different duty rates. Caspian's Classification work locks in the correct codes going forward; Caspian Trade Audit recovers duty overpaid on past misclassifications.