The Supreme Court’s February decision to invalidate tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”) continues to unfold.
In recent filings with the Court of International Trade, the U.S. Customs & Border Patrol (“CBP”) unveiled plans for updated functionality within the existing Automated Commercial Environment (“ACE”), to enable a new, multi-step, refund process known as the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (“CAPE”). [1]
As advertised, CAPE promises an efficient and streamlined process through:
- Bulk submission and processing of claims;
- Automated review of mass claims; and
- ACH electronic payments from the Department of the Treasury.
What is CAPE?
CAPE will comprise four integrated components:
- Claim Portal
Importers and brokers will be able to submit consolidated claims for IEEPA refunds through the web-based ACE portal.
The claim portal will run automated validations to verify that submissions: (i) contain all required information; (ii) are submitted by the correct importer of record or authorized broker; and (iii) contain entries subjected to at least one IEEPA duty.
CBP estimates that the claim portal function is 73% complete.
- Mass Processing
CAPE will automatically remove any applicable IEEPA duties from the validated submissions and calculate the correct duty applied to the entry. [2]
CBP estimates that the mass processing function is 45% complete.[3]
- Review and Liquidation/Reliquidation
CAPE will automatically initiate the review and liquidation/reliquidation process for the entries listed in validated and processed claims, fixing a liquidation/reliquidation date for a specified number of days later.
CBP estimates that the review and liquidation/reliquidation function is 80% complete.[4]
- Refund
CAPE will automatically calculate the appropriate refund amount, including interest. On the specified liquidation/reliquidation date, the refund will be paid through via electronic ACH payment.
Refunds will be consolidated by (i) liquidation/reliquidation date and (ii) importer of record, resulting in lump sum payments.
CBP estimates that the review and liquidation/reliquidation function is 63% complete.[5]
Phased Implementation
CBP expects CAPE to go-live in late April 2026; however, CBP intends to gradually phase in and update CAPE features over time, “beginning with basic functionality […] and adding more functionality in subsequent phases to address more complicated scenarios.” [6]
Notwithstanding the phased implementation, upon launch, CBP expects CAPE will be capable of processing “the majority” of IEEPA refund claims.[7]
How You Can Prepare
Given the phased implementation and anticipated volume of claims, this is likely to be a work in progress.
In advance of CAPE’s go-live, those with IEEPA exposure should consider proactively preparing submissions to minimize processing times, by:
- Ensuring they have an ACE account that is set up for electronic refunds via ACH;
- Continue to audit IEEPA duties to understand the extent of their exposure;
- Compile and organize entry summaries for eventual claim submission;
- Preserve refund rights with respect to liquidated entries by filing protests within 180 days of liquidation, even if such date is before CAPE goes live.
Leech Tishman will continue to closely monitor developments related tariffs imposed by the Trump Administration and advise clients as the legal and regulatory landscape evolves.
For assistance or additional information, please contact a member of our Corporate Practice Group:
Sonny Douglas, Associate (Pending), LL.M. in International Trade, New York (sdouglas@leechtishman.com)
Francesca M. Schiavone, Partner, Pittsburgh (fschiavone@leechtishman.com)
Alexander J. Gase, Partner, Pittsburgh (agase@leechtishman.com)
[1] Declaration of Brandon Lord Responding to March 6, 2026 Court Order, Amus Filtration, Inc. v US, 26-cv-01259 (Ct. Int’l Trade, filed Mar. 12, 2026); Declaration of Brandon Lord Responding to March 12, 2026 Court Order, Amus Filtration, Inc. v US, 26-cv-01259 (Ct. Int’l Trade, filed Mar. 19, 2026).
[2] Decl. of Brandon Lord Responding to March 12, 2026 Court Order, at para 3.
[3] Id., at para 5.
[4] Id., at para 9.
[5] Id., at para 9.
[6] Decl. of Brandon Lord Responding to March 6, 2026 Court Order, at para. 11.
[7] Id.