Tariff refund system set April 20

U.S. Customs and Border Protection said it will open a new tariff-refund system on April 20 for importers seeking money back after the Supreme Court voided the levies. (cbp.gov) The agency’s new tool is called Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries, or CAPE, and it will run inside the Automated Commercial Environment, the customs portal importers and brokers already use. Phase 1 starts April 20, 2026, and covers certain unliquidated entries and some entries within 80 days of liquidation. (cbp.gov) Instead of cutting checks shipment by shipment, Customs said CAPE will group eligible refunds into one electronic payment and add interest when the law requires it. Importers of record and authorized brokers must file a CAPE declaration through the portal and provide bank account information for electronic payment. (money.usnews.com, cbp.gov) The refunds stem from the Supreme Court’s February 20, 2026 ruling in *Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump*, which held that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 did not give the president authority to impose those tariffs. The Court of International Trade then ordered Customs to refund roughly $165 billion to $166 billion in duties collected under that program. (skadden.com, money.usnews.com) Court filings say more than 330,000 importers paid the tariffs across 53 million shipments. As of April 9, 56,497 importers had completed the setup needed for electronic refunds covering $127 billion, according to the government’s filing. (money.usnews.com) Customs said the first phase is limited because some entries are much harder to unwind. Agency official Brandon Lord told the trade court the government is still weighing how to process a subset of entries tied to $2.9 billion in tariffs that would otherwise require manual work. (money.usnews.com) Customs has told importers that accepted CAPE declarations will generally lead to refunds within 60 to 90 days, unless compliance issues trigger extra review. Law firms advising importers have warned companies to make sure their Automated Clearing House refund enrollment is complete before filing. (thompsonhinesmartrade.com, skadden.com) The legal fight is not fully over. Reuters reported that President Donald Trump criticized the Supreme Court ruling and imposed a temporary global tariff under a different statute, a move that has also been challenged in court. (money.usnews.com) For now, April 20 is the date importers can begin testing whether the government’s refund promise works at scale. Customs is starting with the simplest claims first and leaving harder cases for later phases. (cbp.gov, money.usnews.com)