Title 18 — Crimes and Criminal ProcedureRelease 119-73not60
§550 False Claim for Refund of Duties
Title 18 › Part I— CRIMES › Chapter 27— CUSTOMS › § 550
Summary
If you deliberately file a false claim or use fake papers to get extra refunds or payments of duties when exporting goods, you are committing a crime. You can be fined under federal law, jailed for up to 2 years, or both, and the goods or their value can be taken away.
Full Legal Text
Title 18, §550
Crimes and Criminal Procedure — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
Whoever knowingly and willfully files any false or fraudulent entry or claim for the payment of drawback, allowance, or refund of duties upon the exportation of merchandise, or knowingly or willfully makes or files any false affidavit, abstract, record, certificate, or other document, with a view to securing the payment to himself or others of any drawback, allowance, or refund of duties, on the exportation of merchandise, greater than that legally due thereon, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both, and such merchandise or the value thereof shall be forfeited.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Historical and Revision Notes
Based on section 1590 of title 19, U.S.C., 1940 ed., Customs Duties (June 17, 1930, ch. 497, title IV, § 590, 46 Stat. 750). Reference to felony, contained in words “such person shall be guilty of a felony” was omitted as unnecessary in view of definition of felony in section 1 of this title. This, too, was the policy adopted by the codifiers of the 1909 Criminal Code. (See S. Rept. 10, pt. I, pp. 12, 13, and 14, 60th Cong., 1st sess.) Words “and upon conviction thereof” before “shall be punished” were also omitted as unnecessary, since punishment cannot be imposed until a conviction is secured. Changes were made in phraseology.
Editorial Notes
Amendments
1994—Pub. L. 103–322 substituted “fined under this title” for “fined not more than $5,000”.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
18 U.S.C. § 550
Title 18 — Crimes and Criminal Procedure
Last Updated
Apr 5, 2026
Release point: 119-73not60