The landscape of trade compliance is shifting rapidly following the Supreme Court’s striking down of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) tariffs. In a major operational update, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has officially launched Phase 1 of its enhanced refund processing system.
For importers and customs brokers, this update unlocks a massive wave of long-awaited financial relief, but navigating the strict eligibility windows requires careful attention.
Phase 1: Unlocking $28.7 Billion in Refunds
Through the agency’s dedicated portal—Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE)—CBP has expanded functionality to process refunds for shipments currently awaiting reconciliation of their final duty calculations.
Key Eligibility Criteria for Phase 1:
Status: Entries must be unliquidated OR liquidated within 80 days of filing the declaration within the CAPE portal.
Scope: This phase covers an estimated $28.7 billion in eligible refunds.
What’s Next? Phase 2 on the Horizon
CBP is moving quickly to roll out the next phase of this expansion, which is tentatively scheduled for late July.
Phase 2 will introduce functionality to process finally liquidated entries. According to CBP Executive Assistant Commissioner Susan Thomas, this second phase will cover an additional $11.4 billion (approximately 6.9%) of total payments made under the IEEPA tariffs.
Once both phases are fully implemented, 95% of all entries that were subject to the IEEPA tariffs will be eligible for streamlined refunds via the CAPE portal.
The Exceptions: Where Manual Intervention is Required
While the CAPE portal automates the vast majority of these claims, certain complex entries will not be eligible for automated processing. Importers should prepare for additional administrative work if their entries fall into any of the following categories:
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Entries covered by duty drawback.
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Entries currently under formal protest.
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Entries originally filed through improper channels.
The Legal Context: Why CBP is Acting Now
This system upgrade comes at a time of ongoing legal maneuvering. The Department of Justice (DOJ) is currently appealing a Court of International Trade (CIT) order that directed the federal government to issue universal refunds for these tariffs.
While the DOJ does not entirely reject the CIT’s ruling, it argues before the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit that the court only has the jurisdiction to order refunds on finalized entries for importers who actively filed lawsuits. Despite the pending appeal, CBP is proactively building out these capabilities to ensure readiness.
The Sobel Verdict
This is a massive win for the importing community, but the clock is ticking on strict liquidation timelines. Importers should immediately review their entry logs to identify which shipments qualify under the current Phase 1 criteria, and prepare documentation for Phase 2 later this month.
