On February 20, 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the sweeping tariffs imposed by President Trump under the alleged authority of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) were unlawful. On March 4, 2026, the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) ordered U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to issue refunds to importers who had paid tariffs imposed under IEEPA. Following that order, the CIT has overseen CBP’s creation and implementation of the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE), a system put in place to handle the processing of refunds of IEEPA duties paid, with interest.
These developments are particularly important for businesses with global supply chains that import significant volumes of goods into the United States. For importers that paid substantial tariffs under IEEPA, potential refunds may represent a meaningful recovery of cash and an opportunity to improve working capital. However, businesses that fail to complete the required ACE and CAPE account setup, including properly designating a refund bank account, may experience significant delays in receiving funds to which they are entitled.
CAPE Refund System
To access the CAPE system, importers of record (IOR) or their authorized customs broker must first establish an Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) Secure Data Portal account. That ACE account must include a designation of a bank account for refunds. Once an ACE account has been established, the user may set up a separate CAPE account through ACE. The IOR or authorized broker must then complete a declaration which includes the importer number and a list of eligible entry numbers and submit that declaration in CAPE.
CBP currently estimates refunds are being issued within 60-90 days following its acceptance of the respective CAPE Declaration.
Importer Action Required
The Missing Step Holding Up Thousands of Refunds
CAPE is currently set up to issue refunds to the account holder’s bank account designated for refunds. If you have submitted a CAPE Declaration and have not received a refund within the anticipated timeframe, the culprit may be failure to designate a bank account for refunds.
If you fall into this category, you are not alone. As of July 14, 2026, CBP reported that 9,837 refunds have been approved but not issued because the declarant did not properly designate a bank account for refunds through their ACE account, a discrepancy which is likely the result of an assumption that being set up with CBP for payment is what is required.
Confirm Your Refund Account Information
ACE users may confirm they have properly designated a bank account to receive refunds by navigating to the “Importer” sub-account view and selecting the “ACH Refund Authorization” tab. This is where users may view, add and update their bank account information designated for receiving refunds through ACE.
Our team will continue to track and report on tariff refund developments. Please contact your regular Lathrop GPM attorney with any questions.