CBP Outlines Phased System to Repay $166 Billion in Unlawful IEEPA Tariffs

Overview

• U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in court papers that its new CAPE refund system is 60% to 85% built and that Phase 1 could handle about 63% of affected entries.
• CAPE will first accept claims for entries liquidated in roughly the past 80 days, entries with liquidation on hold or under review, and records tied to bonded warehouses.
• About 26,664 importers have set up electronic refund accounts covering roughly 78% of eligible records and about $120 billion, though total refunds are estimated near $166 billion.
• The agency has not set a start date for the new process, while an earlier order from Judge Richard Eaton directed CBP to begin refunds using the current system.
• The Supreme Court struck down the tariffs, which touched more than 330,000 importers across 53 million shipments, and brokers say companies will lean on them to compile entry data and speed payments.