GlossaryEN1 min readUpdated: Jul 23, 2026
Post-Clearance Recovery
Post-clearance recovery is the subsequent collection of import or export duties when a customs debt was originally not assessed or assessed too low.
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Source: https://www.zoll.de/DE/Fachthemen/Zoelle/Abgabenerhebung/Nacherhebung/Absehen-Nacherhebung/Verjaehrung/verjaehrung_node.html
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Passar Hub: Everything on the new Swiss customs system
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Definition & Explanation
Post-clearance recovery is the subsequent collection of import or export duties when a customs debt was originally not assessed or assessed too low. In the EU, the legal basis is Article 105(4) of the Union Customs Code (UCC): if a customs authority discovers – for instance during an audit or after an incorrect tariff classification – that too little duty was entered in the accounts, it must recover the difference. Notification to the customs debtor is generally only permitted within three years of the date the customs debt was incurred; the period is extended where criminal acts are involved. For importers and freight forwarders this means customs declarations, commercial invoices and proofs of preferential origin must be archived in an audit-proof manner for years, because goods already cleared can be reassessed retroactively – particularly relevant in phases of volatile trade policy with rapidly changing duty rates. Not to be confused with a customs refund, where overpaid duties are returned to the customs debtor.
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