IEEPA Tariff Refund Process Launches Today: What Importers Need To Do

The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) refund process ordered by the US Court of International Trade (CIT) for the federal government to return approximately $170 billion plus interest to an estimated 330,000 importers officially launched today, April 20, 2026. The CIT’s order follows the US Supreme Court decision on February 20, 2026, that invalidated the global tariffs imposed by President Trump early in 2025 under the IEEPA. The now‑voided tariffs were assessed on more than 53 million import entries. The scale of these refunds is extraordinary and will likely be one of the largest repayments in US Government history. Importantly, the Supreme Court ruling did not provide any guidance regarding refunds.

Here is what importers need to know to claim the refunds through the new process, as well as potential alternative avenues for relief.

I. Automatic Administrative Refunds for Unliquidated Entries and Entries Within 80 Days of Liquidation

The CIT quickly asserted its exclusive authority to hear IEEPA claims and thus over the refund process. In Atmus Filtration, Inc. v. United States and subsequently Euro-Notions Florida v. US Customs and Border Protection, the CIT ordered US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to liquidate or reliquidate all entries that were subject to the IEEPA tariffs without regard to whether importers have filed suit with the CIT protesting such tariffs. Ensuing litigation at the CIT is ongoing to determine how the refund process will be fully implemented across the board. 

At the outset, CBP has developed the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) Claim Portal as its analytics platform to process IEEPA refund claims from importers of record. CAPE will work within CBP’s Automated Commercial Environment (ACE), the electronic system already in place for processing trade and cargo data. Importers can submit a claim listing all entries on which they paid IEEPA duties via Comma-Separated Values (CSV) upload; CBP will then automatically identify the IEEPA duty amounts and process the refunds for each importer. 

Simply stated, once the importer has identified its IEEPA entries, it will submit its declaration through ACE (CAPE). ACE will validate the entries and recalculate the duties, which will then be reviewed and confirmed by CBP. Refund payments (with interest) will be made electronically and are currently estimated to be sent out in 60 to 90 days. CBP rolled out Phase 1 of the CAPE portal today, April 20, 2026.

Phase 1 covers only entries that have not liquidated yet or are no more than 80 days past liquidation. NOT included are any entries:

• Flagged for reconciliation, as well as Entry Type 09-Reconciliation Summary;
• On a drawback claim;
• Covered by an open protest;
• Not filed in ACE or without a liquidation status in ACE;
• Subject to Antidumping/Countervailing Duties (AD/CVD); and/or
• For which liquidation is final.

As of April 20, the 80-day window will cover entries that liquidated on or after January 30, 2026.

The refund process will require affirmative action by importers of record to submit and declare an initial claim. Because claims will be based on CBP’s entry‑level calculations, importers should not assume those figures are complete or accurate. Now is the time to identify and confirm your relevant entries data to position your company for payment.

We recommend taking the following steps immediately if you believe you are entitled to any refund of IEEPA tariffs:

1. Confirm that you are the importer of record for the subject transactions.
2. Identify all affected entries.

   Compile a complete list of entries subject to IEEPA duties, including duty amounts and liquidation dates. Your customs broker(s) can assist in extracting and validating this data.

3. Verify ACH enrollment in ACE.

Confirm that your company has ACE access and that it is enrolled in CBP’s Automated Clearing House (ACH) refund program through the ACE Secure Data Portal. CBP now issues all refunds electronically. Paper checks are no longer issued.

For additional information, please refer to CBP’s IEEPA Duty Refunds Frequently Asked Questions, CAPE Information Notice, and CAPE Refund Quick Reference Guide.

II. Protests for Entries 81–180 Days After Liquidation

Because CAPE is not yet able to process entries that are 81+ days past liquidation, importers of record should be prepared to timely file protests for entries within the 81–180-day window. The deadline for filing a protest is 180 days after liquidation. A single protest can cover multiple entries within the protest window. Filing a protest may be necessary to preserve rights to relief and potential judicial review under established customs laws.

Taking these steps now will help ensure your refunds are processed promptly and accurately once claims are submitted.

III. Lawsuits

The Government still might try to prolong the refund process and appeal the CIT’s order, even though it has the internal capability to issue refunds. Importers can file lawsuits for refunds now, or they can wait to see how CBP’s process and the litigation continue to develop. If those processes drag on for a long time, importers should be prepared to file lawsuits within the two-year statute of limitations (i.e., within two years of when the relevant tariffs took effect). The statute of limitations will expire:

• February 4, 2027, for the China fentanyl IEEPA tariffs;
• March 4, 2027, for the Canada and Mexico IEEPA tariffs;
• April 5, 2027, for the IEEPA reciprocal (“Liberation Day”) tariffs on nearly all countries;
• August 6, 2027, for the additional Brazil IEEPA tariffs; and
• August 27, 2027, for the additional India IEEPA tariffs.

IV. Conclusion

Butzel attorneys have experience with and are available to assist companies with the refund process, including evaluation of affected entries; preparation and filing of CAPE declarations and refund claims, protests, and lawsuits; and related compliance considerations. Please contact your regular Butzel attorney or any member of the firm’s International Trade Practice Group for further guidance.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.