IEEPA Tariffs update - The Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) system goes live on 20 April 2026
Andrew Thurston · Posted on: April 20th 2026 · read
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has now confirmed how it intends to receive and process refunds of tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). While much of the commentary has focused on U.S.‑based importers, a significant proportion of the financial exposure, and refund opportunity, sits with non‑U.S. businesses that import into the United States or sell into the U.S. market on a delivered basis.
For those businesses, the opening of CBP’s new CAPE refund process creates a narrow and time‑critical window to recover duties. However, pursuing refunds is not without risk: any submission has the potential to trigger wider customs scrutiny, making it essential that import data is carefully reviewed and validated before claims are filed.
This insight explains what CBP has announced, who may benefit, and why now is the right time to assess both the opportunity and the compliance risks.
What has CBP announced?
After a prolonged period of uncertainty, CBP announced on 10 April that it will introduce a new administrative mechanism to handle refunds of IEEPA tariffs. This process will be rolled out in phases, with Phase 1 launching on 20 April 2026.
Crucially, CBP has confirmed that it will only accept claims for entries that are either:
- still within the initial liquidation period; or
- within a limited additional 80‑day window following liquidation.
Any entry falling outside those timeframes will be excluded from Phase 1 and may require a more complex and costly protest or litigation route.
For non‑U.S. businesses that have continued trading into the U.S. without fully mapping their exposure, this announcement materially changes the landscape: refunds are now possible, but only if action is taken immediately.
Why the window is so narrow
To illustrate how limited the opportunity is, assume a CAPE claim is submitted on 20 April 2026, the first day Phase 1 is available. Based on CBP’s liquidation and timing rules, the oldest import entry that could potentially qualify would date back to 22 March 2025.
As the IEEPA tariffs were introduced from early February 2025, this means a portion of the IEEPA period is already out of scope for Phase 1, particularly for businesses importing from China.
The timeline below shows how these rules operate in practice:
Key liquidation and refund milestones
The practical takeaway is clear: delaying analysis risks permanently losing access to the simplest refund route.
Opportunity does not come without risk
There has been understandable debate around whether the CAPE process will expose importers to wider CBP scrutiny. In practice, some degree of review is inevitable.
CBP has been explicit that Phase 1 is intentionally narrow, designed to deal only with “straightforward” scenarios. Anything involving valuation complexity, legal interpretation or unusual pricing movements is likely to fall outside Phase 1 or be examined more closely.
For example:
- Pricing adjustments made to mitigate tariffs may be visible in CBP data.
- Fluctuations in declared value by HS code can trigger risk‑based reviews.
- Where undervaluation concerns arise, CBP may assess additional ad valorem duties, potentially offsetting all or part of any IEEPA refund.
This is why an IEEPA refund claim should never be treated as a simple administrative filing. Any submission effectively invites CBP to re‑examine the accuracy of historical entries.
Why data analysis is the critical first step
Before any claim is filed, importers should conduct a structured review of their ACE import data to:
- identify which entries include IEEPA tariffs;
- quantify potential refund values;
- confirm importer‑of‑record status; and
- assess valuation, classification and origin risk.
This analysis allows businesses to determine whether a claim is commercially worthwhile and whether there are any compliance issues that need to be addressed before CBP becomes involved.
For many non‑U.S. businesses, this step alone provides valuable insight into U.S. customs exposure well beyond IEEPA.
Phase 1 exclusions to be aware of
Not all imports qualify for CAPE Phase 1. Key exclusions include:
Antidumping (AD) and Countervailing Duties (CVD)
These are administered by the U.S. Department of Commerce, not CBP. As final duty rates often take years to determine, AD/CVD entries are excluded from Phase 1 and may require later CAPE phases or formal appeals.
Section 232 duties (steel and aluminium)
These are handled by CBP and can coexist with Phase 1 claims. IEEPA tariffs may be refunded, while Section 232 duties remain payable.
Understanding how these regimes interact is essential to avoiding rejected claims or unintended consequences.
Final thoughts
The introduction of CAPE Phase 1 creates an opportunity for importers to recover IEEPA tariffs but, at the same time, it increases the risk of CBP customs compliance interventions which could delay, or even, reject the claims. Acting quickly, but carefully, is critical and those that wait risk missing the window entirely, while those that rush without proper review risk drawing attention to underlying issues. Now is the time to assess, quantify and decide.
How MHA can help
MHA is supporting both U.S. and non‑U.S. businesses in assessing their exposure to IEEPA tariffs and navigating the CAPE process.
We offer a fixed‑fee assessment that:
- analyses ACE import data;
- quantifies potential refunds;
- identifies customs compliance risks; and
- provides clear, practical recommendations on next steps.
Only with this clarity can a business make an informed decision on whether pursuing a refund is the right approach.
