IEEPA Tariff Recovery Guide

What happened?

On February 20, 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6–3 that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) does not authorize the president to impose tariffs. The decision opened the door to refund claims for duties collected under the IEEPA tariffs.

CBP disclosed that approximately $166 billion in IEEPA duties had been collected across more than 53 million entries filed by over 330,000 importers.

On March 4, the Court of International Trade ordered CBP to immediately liquidate or reliquidate affected entries with IEEPA tariffs removed. The CIT has made clear that it does not want importers to have to file individual lawsuits to obtain refunds — the intent is an administrative process that covers all affected entries.

In response, CBP has built a new system called CAPE (Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries) to process refunds. The CAPE portal opens on April 20, 2026.

Are there replacement tariffs?

Yes. The administration has issued replacement tariffs under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 and initiated additional investigations under Section 301.

Other tariff authorities remain unaffected by the Supreme Court ruling, including Section 232 tariffs (steel, aluminum, autos, semiconductors, etc.), Section 301 tariffs on China, and anti-dumping/countervailing duties.

The IEEPA decision does not create a zero-tariff environment — only tariffs imposed under IEEPA authority are affected.

Am I eligible for a refund?

If you paid IEEPA duties on U.S. import entries — typically under HTS 9903.01 or 9903.02 — during the period they were in effect, you are expected to be eligible for a refund. This includes duties paid on imports from:

• China and Hong Kong — starting Feb 4, 2025
• Canada and Mexico — starting Mar 4, 2025
• Brazil and India — confirmed included by the CIT
• Other reciprocal tariff markets, including the EU, UK, Japan, South Korea, and Vietnam — starting Apr 5, 2025

IEEPA duty collection ended for entries on or after February 24, 2026.

You must be the importer of record (IOR) on the entry to claim the refund. The IOR is the party with the legal right to apply to recover duties.

How much could I recover?

That depends on your import volume and which IEEPA tariff lines applied. To calculate your eligible refund amount:

1. 1 Review your entry summaries (CBP Form 7501).
2. 2 Isolate the IEEPA-specific duty lines from other duties, such as Section 301.
3. 3 Total the duties paid on those lines.

You can find your entry summaries through the ACE Portal, your customs broker, or your internal records. You may also be entitled to statutory interest on top of the refund amount.

How does the CAPE refund system work?

CBP's CAPE (Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries) system processes refunds in phases.

Phase 1 (launching April 20, 2026):

• Covers unliquidated entries and entries within CBP's 90-day voluntary reliquidation window
• This represents approximately 63% of all entries on which IEEPA tariffs were paid
• Importers submit declarations in ACE listing their affected entries
• CBP validates the data, reliquidates the entries, and issues refunds electronically via ACH transfer
• Processing takes up to 45 days from CBP's acceptance of a declaration

Phase 1 does not accept:

• Entries flagged for reconciliation and entry type 09
• Entries designated on a drawback claim
• Entries covered by an open protest
• Entries not filed in ACE or without a liquidation status in ACE

Future CAPE phases will handle finalized entries, reconciliation and drawback entries, complex interest calculations, and non-ABI entries. CBP has committed to building these capabilities but has not announced a timeline.

What did the Court of International Trade order?

On March 4, 2026, the Court of International Trade issued an order directing CBP to immediately liquidate or reliquidate entries with IEEPA tariffs removed. Judge Eaton, the sole judge designated to hear IEEPA refund cases, has overseen the development of CAPE and provided regular status updates.

The CIT has signaled that it intends for all affected entries to be refunded through an administrative process. For entries not resolved through CAPE, importers retain the right to file suit at the CIT under 28 USC 1581(i), with a filing window of up to two years.

Can I recognize refunds on my balance sheet?

Potentially. Now that the Supreme Court has ruled the IEEPA tariffs unlawful and CBP is actively building the refund mechanism, you may be able to treat eligible refunds as receivables. The accounting treatment will depend on the certainty of collection, the recovery pathway, and your company's specific circumstances — a conversation for your finance team and auditors.

How do I receive refunds?

All refunds will be issued electronically via ACH transfer to the importer of record's registered account. CBP requires importers to be enrolled in ACH electronic payments through the ACE Portal to receive refunds.

Do I need to be enrolled in CBP's ACH electronic payment system?

Yes. CBP issues refunds electronically via ACH through its standard electronic payments system, managed through the ACE Portal. This is not a new program specific to IEEPA — it is CBP's existing electronic payments infrastructure.

Confirm that your enrollment is active and your banking information on file is current. If you are not enrolled, you will not receive refunds when they are processed.

Why use Authentica for tariff refund recovery?

Most companies don't have the staff to pull data, separate duty lines, track deadlines, and assemble filing packages across hundreds or thousands of entries. Customs brokers face the same volume problem from every client at once. The companies that get their documentation ready first will be first in line.

Authentica deploys AI agents that do the heavy lifting:

Can I use Authentica if I'm a customs broker?

Yes. Authentica reviews bulk entry exports, identifies refund eligibility by client, classifies entries by CAPE phase, and produces declarations and supporting documentation in the exact format you need for submission through your ABI software or the ACE Portal.

What do I need to get started?

Send us your entry data — an ACE export, broker files, or individual entry summaries — and our agents will analyze it and tell you how much you're owed. No cost, no commitment.

How does Authentica protect my data?

Your data is encrypted in transit and at rest, processed only for the tasks you authorize, and never used to train AI models. You own all data inputs and outputs. Authentica is SOC 2 compliant with full audit trails on every action.