You're probably overpaying to import. The question is how much.
Most importers carry a 2–4% duty overpayment from HS code misclassification alone — before counting demurrage nobody reconciled, detention nobody disputed, and freight invoices nobody checked against the quote. Individually, each looks like the cost of doing business. Together, they're often a full margin point.
We review your import chain line by line, quantify every leak, and recover what's still claimable.
Last updated: July 2026
The tariff changed underneath you
Saudi Arabia updated its Integrated Customs Tariff in late 2025, revising duty rates and reclassifying HS codes. If your broker is clearing on the classifications set up years ago, you may be overpaying on some lines and under-declaring on others — both cost you, just on different timelines. Classification isn't a one-time setup; it's a position that has to be re-verified every time the tariff moves.
The overpayment hides inside a working shipment
A container that clears and arrives looks like a success. Nobody re-opens a successful shipment to ask whether the duty rate was right, whether an origin preference went unclaimed, or whether the declared value matched the commercial reality. The goods sold; the file closed. The leak repeats on every identical shipment after it.
Nobody owns the reconciliation
Your broker clears, your forwarder ships, your accountant books what's invoiced. No one in that chain is paid to ask whether the invoice should have been smaller — demurrage days that don't match the terminal record, detention charged on containers returned on time, accessorial fees that appeared between quote and final invoice. That's the gap we fill.
What the review covers
We re-verify the HS classification and duty rate on your highest-value import lines against the current Integrated Customs Tariff, check declared values for consistency with your books — ZATCA cross-references import values against tax filings, so accuracy protects you in both directions — and identify unclaimed exemptions and origin preferences. Where duty was overpaid and a refund route exists, we document the claim: ZATCA runs a customs duty refund e-service, and several routes are deadline-bound — GCC-origin preferential claims, for instance, must be filed within 90 days of clearance.
We reconcile every D&D charge in the review period against vessel arrival, container movement, and free-time terms. Charges that don't survive the reconciliation get disputed with the carrier or forwarder — with the evidence file attached.
Quote-to-invoice variance, accessorial creep, fuel and currency surcharges applied off-contract, and rate benchmarking across your lanes. Output: a lane-by-lane picture of what you pay versus what you agreed to pay.
How it works
You give us access to a defined review period: customs declarations (Bayan files), commercial invoices, forwarder and carrier invoices, and D&D statements. We handle the rest — no shadowing your team, no workshops.
Every leak is measured and categorized: recoverable now (claimable refunds and disputable charges), stoppable now (misclassifications and off-contract billing to correct on future shipments), and structural (terms and processes to renegotiate). Output: a quantified leak report with a recovery target per category.
We prepare the refund claims and dispute files, correct the classification going forward, and hand your team the reconciliation routine that keeps the leaks closed. Ongoing landed-cost discipline can roll into the Fractional CFO retainer.
Why Capfide
Seventeen years inside freight forwarding finance — operator, not observer. We've sat on the issuing side of the invoices you're paying, which is precisely why we know where they're wrong. The review is led by Majdi Noufal, CPA (New Hampshire), CMA (IMA), supported by a network of CPA-, CMA- and JCPA-credentialed professionals across Jordan and Saudi Arabia. And we hold the same line here as everywhere else: this is not a "minimize at any cost" exercise. The goal is that you pay the correct amount, provably — with a file that stands up to a ZATCA post-clearance review as comfortably as it stands up to your board.
Frequently asked questions.
How do I know if I'm overpaying customs duty?
You almost certainly can't tell from inside the business — that's the problem. The signals are indirect: landed costs that drift up without a rate change you agreed to, duty lines your broker set up years ago and never revisited, and a tariff that was updated in late 2025 while your classifications weren't. The only reliable answer is a line-by-line re-verification of your top import lines against the current tariff.
Can overpaid customs duties actually be recovered in Saudi Arabia?
In defined cases, yes. ZATCA operates a customs duty refund e-service, and specific routes exist — including refunds tied to GCC rules of origin (deadline-bound: 90 days from clearance) and refunds on re-exported goods where the re-export declaration is linked to the original import. Each route is document-heavy, which is why claims go unfiled. We prepare the file; you collect the refund.
Is this the same as your Cost Leak Diagnostic?
Same discipline, different seat. The Cost Leak Diagnostic serves freight forwarders and logistics operators — the businesses issuing the invoices. This review serves cargo owners — the businesses paying them. If you both move and own freight, we'll scope one engagement covering both sides.
What do you need from us to start?
Read-only access to a defined period: customs declarations, commercial and freight invoices, and D&D statements. Roughly one hour of your team's time for the kickoff. No system changes, no disruption.
Do you work on a share-of-recovery basis?
For the recovery component, yes — a fixed fee for the review itself, with a success-based component on recovered amounts available by agreement. We'll propose the structure that fits your volume on the first call.
One review period. Every leak, quantified.
Thirty minutes on your import profile — volumes, lanes, and where the leak categories likely are. We'll tell you what a review would cover and what recovery is realistic. No deck, no pitch.
Book a review call →