The U.S. government is launching a new online portal Monday allowing businesses to claim refunds on tariffs the Supreme Court struck down earlier this year.
The refunds stem from a February Supreme Court ruling that found President Donald Trump’s tariffs issued under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) were unconstitutional. An estimated $127 billion in eligible refunds will be available in the first phase, but the process is not automatic, and consumers will not receive checks directly.
Why It Matters
The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on February 20 that Trump usurped Congress’ tax-setting role when he set new import tax rates on products from nearly every country, citing the U.S. trade deficit as a national emergency. A judge at the U.S. Court of International Trade subsequently determined companies subjected to the tariffs were entitled to refunds. A February Tax Foundation report found Trump’s tariffs equated to a tax increase of $1,000 per household in 2025 — but those costs will not be directly reimbursed to consumers, only to importers.
Who Is Eligible?
Phase 1 eligibility is limited to importers who paid IEEPA tariffs and whose entries are either unliquidated or were liquidated within the preceding 80 days. Applicants must be the Importer of Record or the licensed customs broker who filed the entry. An active ACE Secure Data Portal account and ACH refund enrollment are required to receive payment.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said in court filings that over 330,000 importers paid a total of roughly $166 billion in IEEPA tariffs across 53 million shipments. However, not all of those payments qualify for Phase 1 refunds, which is limited to entries that were either unliquidated or finalized within the preceding 80 days.
Of the 330,000 importers who paid tariffs, only 56,497 had completed registration in CBP’s electronic payment system as of April 14 — making them eligible for refunds totaling $127 billion, including interest. The remaining importers and shipments will be addressed in future phases.
How to Claim a Tariff Refund
The new Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) system will go live at 8 a.m. Eastern on Monday.
The process works as follows: the importer or broker logs into the ACE Secure Data Portal and submits a CAPE Declaration via CSV upload listing all entry numbers for which they seek refunds. CBP then validate the entries, removes the IEEPA tariff provisions, and recalculates duties as if the tariffs had never applied. A consolidated electronic refund is then issued via ACH to the Importer of Record.
CBP estimates refunds will take 60 to 90 days from acceptance of a CAPE Declaration — longer than initially expected due to volume and complexity. Experts are urging patience. “Like any electronic online program that goes live with a lot of interest, I would expect that there might be some hiccups,” Meghann Supino, a partner at Ice Miller, told the Associated Press. Accuracy is also critical — submissions can be rejected if formatting or data is incorrect, and incorrect ACH bank information will delay or prevent payment.
Will Consumers See Refunds?
Consumers will not receive refund checks.
Refunds go only to importers of record, not the general public — despite the household costs absorbed during the tariff period. However, class-action lawsuits aimed at forcing companies including Costco and Ray-Ban maker Essilor Luxottica to reimburse shoppers are working through the U.S. legal system. FedEx, which collected tariffs directly from consumers on imported packages, has said it will return refunds to customers once it receives them from CBP, and plans to begin filing claims Monday.
What Happens Next
Monday’s launch is only Phase 1. CBP says additional phases are planned to expand eligibility and handle more complex refund scenarios.
More than 330,000 importers paid the tariffs at issue across 53 million shipments, meaning the refund process will likely continue for months. Approximately $2.9 billion in deposits will require manual processing outside the CAPE system.
Reporting from the Associated Press contributed to this article.
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