U.S. tariff‑refund portal
The U.S. is preparing to open a tariff‑refund system next week to let importers file claims tied to as much as $166 billion in tariffs that courts found improperly collected. Eligibility will depend on whether companies can document they actually paid the affected tariffs and can match entries to claims, and importers are racing to prepare filings. (bnnbloomberg.ca) (newsweek.com)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection will open its new CAPE refund portal on April 20, letting importers start claiming back tariffs the courts said were unlawfully collected. (cbp.gov) The portal covers tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, a law the Supreme Court said on February 20, 2026 does not give a president power to impose tariffs. The Court of International Trade then ordered refunds on March 4. (cbp.gov) (hklaw.com) (ropesgray.com) CBP says Phase 1 starts April 20, 2026 and is limited to certain unliquidated entries and certain entries within 80 days of liquidation. Filers must submit a CAPE declaration through the Automated Commercial Environment, or ACE, using a comma-separated values file rather than the older broker interface. (cbp.gov) (nortonrosefulbright.com) The money is large enough to reshape cash flow for import-heavy businesses. Estimates for the refund pool range from about $127 billion eligible in the first rollout to as much as $166 billion or even $175 billion overall, depending on how later phases are counted. (retaildive.com) (bnnbloomberg.ca) (cbsnews.com) The first phase does not mean every importer gets paid right away. CBP says CAPE is being built in stages, and entries flagged for reconciliation, drawback claims, open protests, some non-ACE filings, certain antidumping or countervailing duty cases, and entries already final are outside Phase 1. (cbp.gov) (nortonrosefulbright.com) Eligibility turns on records, not just whether a company imported goods during the tariff period. Only the importer of record or the customs broker that filed on that importer’s behalf can submit the declaration, and the filer has to match specific entries to the refund claim. (cbp.gov) (cbsnews.com) CBP also requires refund recipients to have an ACE portal account and U.S. bank information on file for Automated Clearing House payments. Each CAPE declaration can include up to 9,999 entries, but importers can file more than one declaration. (cbp.gov) (nortonrosefulbright.com) Trade lawyers say the system is faster than forcing companies to pursue refunds one entry at a time, but they also say the burden sits with importers to organize years of customs data. As of April 9, more than 56,000 importers had registered to receive refunds, according to CBP figures cited by CBS News. (nortonrosefulbright.com) (cbsnews.com) Small-business groups have welcomed the launch while arguing the government should make recovery less cumbersome. The Main Street Alliance said businesses should not have to clear extra hurdles to recover money collected under tariffs the courts later threw out. (cbsnews.com) For importers, the next date is April 20. The portal opens then, but whether money comes back quickly will depend on which entries qualify in Phase 1 and how cleanly each company can prove what it paid. (cbp.gov) (rsmus.com)
