CUSTOMS OFFERS ELECTRONIC REFUND PAYMENTS

CUSTOMS OFFERS ELECTRONIC REFUND PAYMENTS The U.S. Customs Service is offering electronic refunds of duties, taxes and fees, which can be paid directly to an importer’s bank through the Automated Clearinghouse, the electronic payment option that allows participants to electronically pay those costs.
   “This is a great program to minimize delays,” said Robert Pisani, director of the Global Trade Advisory Group for KMZ Rosenman in Washington. “It’s one less paper transaction you would have to contend with.”
   To enroll in this service, importers need to complete the Payee/Company Information Section of an ACH Vendor/Miscellaneous Payment Enrollment Form and forward that form to the company’s bank so that it may insert information in the Financial Institution Section. Importers using multiple suffixes at the end of their Importer Identification Number and maintain a separate bank account for that number must complete a separate ACH Vendor/Miscellaneous Payment Enrollment Form. Customs will notify the importer of the effective date of its enrollment in the program. Any refunds liquidated after the effective date will be transmitted directly to the importer’s bank account via the ACH system.