A U.S. antidumping case is two decisions on two clocks. The Commerce Department decides whether imports are sold below fair value — a preliminary finding due 140 days after initiation — and the U.S. International Trade Commission decides whether a domestic industry was injured, and both answers must be affirmative before a single dollar of duty is owed.
The split is the design, not an accident. One agency runs the pricing math, the other runs the harm test, and either one can end the case by itself.
Who starts a dumping case?
Almost always a private party, not the government. A petition from U.S. producers or workers is filed with Commerce and the ITC at the same time, and the two agencies open parallel investigations off that single filing, per the ITC's published overview of the two-agency split. Commerce can also self-initiate, though that is rare.
Commerce then has 20 days after a petition is filed to examine the accuracy and adequacy of the evidence and decide whether to proceed, under the petition provisions at 19 U.S.C. 1673a. If Commerce has to poll the industry to test support, that window stretches — but the statute caps the period between filing and the initiation decision at 40 days.
The petition also has to clear a two-part support test. Producers backing it must account for at least 25 percent of total production of the domestic like product, and for more than 50 percent of the production of the portion of the industry that takes a position for or against.
Commerce must initiate when a petition meets the statutory criteria. Its own guidance states the agency cannot, by law, consider extra-statutory factors in that decision.
What does each agency actually decide?
Commerce decides the pricing question: whether the goods were sold at less than fair value, or, in a countervailing duty case, whether a foreign government subsidized them. It also calculates the margin — the number that becomes the duty rate.
The ITC decides the injury question: whether there is material injury, or a threat of it, to the domestic industry by reason of the dumped or subsidized imports. In the preliminary phase the ITC applies a lower bar, asking only whether there is a "reasonable indication" of injury.
Small margins drop out. Commerce disregards a weighted-average dumping margin of less than 2 percent ad valorem, per section 733(b)(3) of the Tariff Act of 1930, codified at 19 U.S.C. 1673b. A case can survive the injury test and still produce no order if the math lands below that line.
How fast does the clock run?
Faster than most trade processes, and the deadlines are statutory rather than discretionary. The two agencies alternate: the ITC moves first, Commerce takes the long middle stretch, and the ITC closes the case.
| Step | Agency | Deadline | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Decide whether to initiate | Commerce | 20 days after the petition is filed; no more than 40 days if the industry is polled | 19 U.S.C. 1673a |
| Preliminary injury determination | ITC | Usually within 45 days of receipt of the petition | ITC process overview |
| Preliminary subsidy determination | Commerce | 65 days after initiation; 130 days if postponed | 19 CFR 351.205 |
| Preliminary dumping determination | Commerce | 140 days after initiation; 190 days if postponed | 19 CFR 351.205 |
| Final injury determination | ITC | 120 days after an affirmative Commerce preliminary, or 45 days after an affirmative Commerce final, whichever is later | ITC process overview |
The postponement figures come from Commerce's preliminary-determination regulation at 19 CFR 351.205.
A negative ITC preliminary ends everything. The ITC states plainly that if its preliminary determination is negative, the investigation is terminated; if the final determination is negative, no order issues.
When do importers actually start paying?
At Commerce's affirmative preliminary determination — months before anyone knows the final rate. Under 19 U.S.C. 1673b, an affirmative preliminary triggers suspension of liquidation on entries and requires a cash deposit, bond, or other security for each entry, set at the estimated weighted-average margin or the all-others rate.
Those instructions do not run indefinitely. The statute limits them to four months, extendable to six if exporters accounting for a significant share of exports request it.
Collection is a third agency's job. U.S. Customs and Border Protection describes its role as collecting AD/CVD duties on time, liquidating final duties accurately, and detecting and deterring circumvention of the law. The rate is Commerce's; the money is CBP's to collect.
What does a live case look like on paper?
Like a scheduling notice with two case numbers. In investigations of unwrought palladium from Russia, the ITC issued a notice dated February 19, 2026 scheduling the final phase of countervailing duty investigation No. 701-TA-776 and antidumping investigation No. 731-TA-1761, according to the Federal Register scheduling notice.
The notice set a prehearing conference for April 24, 2026 and a hearing for April 27, 2026. It also shows the two tracks running out of step: Commerce had reached an affirmative preliminary dumping determination, while its preliminary subsidy determination in the parallel case was still pending.
How long does an order last?
Five years at a time, and the default is revocation. Under 19 U.S.C. 1675, Commerce and the ITC must review an order no later than five years after its publication, and the order is revoked unless Commerce finds dumping or subsidization would be likely to continue or recur and the ITC finds injury would be likely to continue or recur.
Both findings have to be affirmative for the order to survive that sunset review. A negative from either agency ends it.
What the process does not settle
It does not settle what anyone downstream pays. The ITC's statutory question is material injury to the domestic industry producing the like product, not the effect on the buyers, importers, or consumers further along the chain, and the agencies do not publish a finding on retail prices as part of the determination.
It is also not a finding of wrongdoing in a criminal sense. Commerce calculates a margin between the price charged in the United States and a measure of fair value; that is an arithmetic result under the statute, not an allegation of fraud.
Frequently asked questions
Can one agency issue duties without the other?
No. Commerce determines dumping or subsidization and sets the margin, while the ITC determines material injury or threat to the domestic industry. Per the ITC's process overview, a negative preliminary injury determination terminates the investigation, and a negative final determination means no antidumping or countervailing duty order is issued.
What is the difference between a 701 case and a 731 case?
The numbers track the two statutes. A 701-TA investigation is a countervailing duty case, aimed at foreign government subsidies. A 731-TA investigation is an antidumping case, aimed at sales below fair value. The Federal Register notice on unwrought palladium from Russia carries both, No. 701-TA-776 and No. 731-TA-1761.
When does an importer first post money?
After Commerce's affirmative preliminary determination. That determination suspends liquidation and requires a cash deposit, bond, or other security on each entry at the estimated margin, per 19 U.S.C. 1673b. Those instructions run up to four months, extendable to six months on request by exporters accounting for a significant share of exports.
Does an order stay in place forever?
No. Under 19 U.S.C. 1675, Commerce and the ITC review each order no later than five years after publication. The order is revoked unless Commerce finds dumping or subsidization would be likely to continue or recur and the ITC finds material injury would be likely to continue or recur. A negative from either agency ends the order.
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