A recent U.S. Supreme Court decision creates refund opportunities for importers that paid duties while tariffs were in effect in 2025 through early 2026.
In February 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that certain tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) were unlawful. As a result, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has begun accepting refund claims and initiating the refund process for duties paid while these tariffs were in effect in 2025 through early 2026, plus interest.
Refund Opportunity
For importers operating in industries with high tariff exposure like consumer goods, electronics, industrial equipment and automotive parts, the aggregate duty recovery can be substantial.
Beginning April 20, importers of record (or their authorized customs brokers) may submit IEEPA tariff refund requests electronically through the ACE Secure Data Portal using the CAPE tool. The eligible tariff refunds include all duties imposed under the IEEPA from February 2025 through February 2026.
Phase 1 of CAPE is intentionally limited to lower‑complexity scenarios, including:
- Unliquidated entries subject to IEEPA duties
- Entries liquidated within approximately 80 days of the filing date
- Certain suspended, extended or under‑review entries (with refunds issued upon liquidation)
CBP has indicated that Phase 1 is expected to capture a significant portion of eligible entries. Additional phases planned later in 2026 are intended to address more complex fact patterns, including reconciliation entries, drawback claims and historically liquidated entries.
Once a submission is accepted, CBP anticipates refunds to be issued electronically within approximately 60–90 days, inclusive of statutory interest, subject to standard compliance review.
Additional Opportunities for Those Indirectly Impacted
Beyond the importers directly impacted by the tariff refunds, opportunities also exist for businesses that absorbed the cost of tariffs indirectly. Many manufacturers and distributors absorbed these tariff costs through higher supplier pricing. Now that refunds are being issued to importers, downstream companies must be ready to engage in conversations aimed at reimbursement of their fair share of the refunded amounts.
Additionally, downstream companies must be positioned to engage in discussions to adjust finished good and component pricing on a going forward basis now that their supplier has been relieved of the additional tariff burden.
How Schneider Downs Can Help
The CAPE process is more systematic than a traditional protest, but it is not without complexity. Businesses with large import programs may need to coordinate between multiple brokers, reconcile entry records across multiple ports and sequence their filings to avoid inadvertently locking out eligible entries with an improperly structured declaration. Even for business with smaller, less complex import programs, getting the filing right the first time, and understanding which entries fall into which phase, can meaningfully accelerate the timeline.
Schneider Downs’ professionals are poised to help business throughout the refund process by:
- Identifying potentially eligible entries and assessing exposure under the IEEPA refund framework using proprietary analytics tools
- Assisting with data preparation and validation for CAPE submissions
- Supporting internal controls, documentation and governance related to tariff recovery
- Advising on refund strategy, including identification and mitigation of compliance anomalies that could delay or jeopardize refunds
- Addressing related customs and trade considerations before, during and after the refund process
- Maintaining compliance and minimizing operational disruption
Additionally, for those companies indirectly impacted by the tariffs, Schneider Downs’ professionals can assist you to:
- Quantify tariff costs embedded in historical prices
- Engage suppliers in informed pricing discussions
Time is of the essence, while the portal is open there is no guarantee how long refunds will be processed. For more information, contact the team at [email protected].
About Schneider Downs International Tax Services
Schneider Downs Tax Advisory Services are specialized services delivered by knowledge experts to minimize our clients’ tax liabilities and fully capitalize on incentives and credits available based on the clients’ business activity.
To learn more, visit our dedicated International Tax Services page.
