Overview
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection said Tuesday in a trade court filing that its new refund portal is 60% to 85% complete and that each claim review could take up to 45 days.
- The first rollout will take claims tied to entries that were recently finalized or are suspended or under review, leaving many older shipments waiting for later phases.
- Officials expect the opening phase to cover roughly two-thirds of affected entries worth about $120 billion, with 26,664 importers registered to receive electronic payments that account for about 78% of paid entries.
- The Supreme Court in February invalidated President Trump’s IEEPA tariffs, and the administration has since used Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act to impose a temporary 10% surcharge.
- Refund logistics span about 53 million entries across more than 330,000 importers, sparking parallel lawsuits by companies and consumers as small firms report cash strains from higher prices and borrowing to pay duties.