Executive summary

In a declaration filed on 31 March 2026 with the United States (US) Court of International Trade (CIT), US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported material progress on its new Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) functionality within the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) to calculate and refund International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) duties. CBP also refined the CAPE Phase 1 scope to align with orders the CIT issued on 20 March and 27 March 2026.

Phase 1 will process unliquidated entries and entries within the 90-day voluntary reliquidation window. CBP estimates that Phase 1 can cover approximately 63% of IEEPA paid/deposited entries, with later phases to address entries that are liquidated and final and other complex scenarios. (Liquidation of an entry being imported into the US occurs when the CBP determines the total duties, taxes and fees due on the imported goods. Either CBP or the importer may request voluntary reliquidation within 90 days of liquidation to correct errors. The importer may file a protest within 180 days of liquidation.)

Phase 1 will exclude entries flagged for reconciliation, entries designated on drawback claims, entries subject to an open protest, entries not filed in ACE or missing an ACE liquidation status, and certain entries subject to Anti-Dumping and Countervailing Duties (AD/CVD).

Electronic refunds are mandatory for all IEEPA refunds. As of 26 March 2026, 26,664 importers of record have completed electronic refund setup, covering 78% of affected entries (approximately US$120b principal).

CBP reports that, as of 30 March 2026: the Claim Portal is ~85% complete; Mass Processing is ~60% complete; Review and Liquidation/Reliquidation is ~80% complete; and Refund Processing is ~75% complete.

Background

Responding to the CIT's 20 March 2026 amended order (and further amendment on 27 March 2026) in Atmus Filtration, Inc. v. United States, CBP detailed the design and development status of CAPE, a new capability within ACE to administer valid refunds of additional ad valorem duties imposed under IEEPA. CAPE comprises four integrated components: Claim Portal, Mass Processing, Review and Liquidation/Reliquidation, and Refund. Since its prior filings, CBP has advanced core development and testing, including the Claim Portal's user interface, automated validations and refund processing within ACE Collections.

For more on the CIT's original order requiring CBP to establish a process to liquidate and reliquidate entries, see EY Global Tax Alert, US Court of International Trade orders CBP to liquidate and reliquidate entries without IEEPA duties, dated 6 March 2026. For coverage of CBP's initial update to the CIT, see EY Global Tax Alert, US Customs and Border Protection details new CAPE process in ACE to administer IEEPA duty refunds; phased rollout planned, dated 13 March 2026.

Note that the CIT amended its original order on 27 March 2026, directing CBP to liquidate or reliquidate all entries subject to IEEPA duties whether unliquidated, liquidated but not final, or liquidated and final without regard to those duties.

Phase 1 scope and parameters

To meet near-term timelines, Phase 1 will process (1) unliquidated entries and (2) entries liquidated within the preceding 80 days (so they can be reliquidated within the 90-day window under 19 U.S.C. Section 1501). CBP estimates this will cover approximately 63% of entries on which IEEPA duties were paid or deposited.

Expanded acceptance (processing will be deployed in stages):

• Entries with ACE status "Suspended," "Extended," or "Under Review": CAPE will remove IEEPA Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) codes and recalculate duties, but it will not liquidate entries or issue refunds. Liquidation without IEEPA duties and any related refunds will occur through the normal process.
• Entries subject to AD/CVD for which liquidation is suspended pending Department of Commerce (DOC) instructions: CAPE will remove IEEPA HTS codes, but CBP will defer liquidation and any refunds of IEEPA duties until the DOC lifts the suspension and directs liquidation.
• Warehouse and warehouse-withdrawal entries: CAPE will remove IEEPA HTS codes, with refunds issued upon liquidation of the warehouse entry in the normal course.

However, Phase 1 will not include: (1) entries flagged for reconciliation (including Entry Type 09, a reconciliation filing that allows the importer to flag data elements at the time of entry and submit the corrected values); (2) entries designated on a drawback claim (for recovery of customs duties, taxes and fees on imported goods that are later exported or destroyed); (3) entries covered by an open protest; (4) entries not filed in ACE or lacking an ACE liquidation status; or (5) AD/CVD entries for which the DOC has issued liquidation instructions and liquidation is pending under 19 U.S.C. Section 1504(d).

CBP estimates that it may take up to 45 days from acceptance of a CAPE Declaration to review and liquidate validated entry summaries (absent compliance concerns requiring further review).

In future phases, CBP plans to expand CAPE functionality to address more complex scenarios. These enhancements will include additional compliance and financial tools to support reconciliation entries, drawback entries, complex interest calculations involving multiple collection dates, and situations in which non-IEEPA bills are outstanding. Future phases will also support entries with final liquidation as well as non-Automatic Broker Interface (ABI) entries that lack entry summary lines. CBP will issue additional guidance as these subsequent phases are developed and deployed.

Component progress highlights (as of 30 March 2026)

The CBP's filing reports the following progress:

• Claim Portal (~85%): Core development is largely complete; ongoing critical testing continues for file and entry-level validations for CAPE Declarations submitted via a new ACE Portal tab (not via ABI), using CSV uploads of entry summaries. (CSV refers to the file format "comma-separated values.")
• Mass Processing (~60%): Significant development has been made on capabilities to review/adjudicate CAPE Declarations and modify entry summaries; CBP is finalizing ACE validations and enhancing history tracking.
• Review and Liquidation/Reliquidation (~80%): Functionality has been developed and is undergoing scenario testing to update entry summaries, schedule liquidation/reliquidation and automatically calculate interest (further testing depends on other components).
• Refund (~75%): The majority of Phase 1 is functionality complete within ACE Collections; performance testing is underway to consolidate refunds by liquidation/reliquidation date and by importer of record (or CBP Form 4811 designee) and disburse electronically.

Electronic refunds requirement

Under Executive Order 14247 (25 March 2025) and CBP's Interim Final Rule (published 2 January 2026; effective 6 February 2026), CBP is required to issue refunds electronically, with limited exceptions. CBP reports that as of 26 March 2026, 26,664 importers of record have completed electronic refund setup. These importers account for approximately 78% of affected entries and approximately US$120b in principal for IEEPA duty payments.

What this means for businesses

Near-term refunds will become available in stages, with Phase 1 prioritizing unliquidated entries and entries liquidated within the preceding 80 days to allow reliquidation within the 90-day window under 19 U.S.C. Section 1501, while entries with a final liquidation status and other complex categories will be addressed in later phases.

Electronic refund readiness is critical; payments will route to the importer of record or a Form 4811 designee via electronic fund transfer once processed.

CAPE will remove IEEPA HTS codes and recalculate duties for certain suspended/warehouse scenarios now, and the resulting refunds will be triggered upon normal liquidation events.

Importers that apply post-importation transfer pricing adjustments should assess how CAPE refunds intersect with customs valuation. Although CAPE removes IEEPA HTS codes and recalculates duties, it does not independently reassess transaction value. Companies with retroactive price adjustments, intercompany true-ups or pending reconciliation filings may need to evaluate whether affected entries fall outside the scope of Phase 1 or require additional coordination to ensure refunded amounts align with final customs values.

Actions to consider

Actions for businesses to consider, depending on their specific situations, include:

• Triage entry populations by segmenting IEEPA affected entries into (1) unliquidated, (2) liquidated within 80 days, and (3) excluded/complex categories to plan Phase 1 submissions and decide whether to defer for later phases.
• Prepare for CAPE Declarations by compiling lists of entry summaries per CAPE requirements. Verify ACE status and presence of IEEPA Chapter 99 HTS codes to reduce validation errors.
• Identify imports subject to post-import transfer pricing adjustments or reconciliation and assess whether those entries are eligible for Phase 1 CAPE processing or will require deferred treatment in later phases to align refunds with final customs values.
• Ensure electronic refund enrollment is complete and confirm any CBP Form 4811 designations so consolidated payments route correctly.
• Coordinate with brokers and counsel to align on exclusions (reconciliation, drawback, open protests, certain AD/CVD statuses) and timing, including the 45-day processing window after declaration acceptance.
• Monitor CBP communications for further guidance for Phase 1 launch of CAPE, validation rules and timelines. Watch for announcements on subsequent functionality to capture finally liquidated and other complex entries.