CAPE Portal Live for IEEPA Duty Refund Claims

April 22, 2026

Developments in IEEPA Refund Process: CAPE Portal Now Live

Janine Campanaro Offit Kurman + Follow Contact LinkedIn Facebook X ;) Embed

This is an update to our previously published article, " Developments in IEEPA Refund Litigation " posted April 15, 2026.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) has taken a significant step forward in implementing a formal refund process for duties imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”). With the launch of Phase 1 of the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (“CAPE”) portal within ACE, importers now have an operational mechanism to begin submitting refund claims.

While this development signals meaningful progress, eligibility is currently limited, and importers must continue to take proactive steps to preserve their rights.

CBP Update: CAPE portal Now Open (Phase 1)

At present, CAPE filings are limited to: **** ****

• Unliquidated entries
• Entries within 80 days of liquidation Entries outside of this scope will be rejected under current validation rules, and CBP has not yet provided guidance on when additional categories of entries will become eligible under future phases.

The CAPE system allows for:

• Submission of multiple entry numbers in a single claim
• Automated validation of entry eligibility
• Batch processing of refund claims (currently up to 10,000 entries per form) Based on initial use, the system is generally intuitive and efficient when claims are properly vetted. While some minor system delays have been observed, likely due to high user volume, the submission process itself has proven to be relatively seamless.

CIT Update: Continued Importance of Protest Rights

As discussed in our prior update, the Court of International Trade (“CIT”) has emphasized the continued importance of administrative remedies.

Specifically:

• CBP has been directed to address:
  • Unliquidated entries; and
  • Entries not yet final
• The CIT has highlighted that importers “should be aware” of protest rights under 19 U.S.C. § 1514 This remains a critical point. While CAPE provides a new refund pathway, it does not eliminate the need to file protests where applicable.

Entries outside the CAPE eligibility window, particularly those more than 80 days post-liquidation, must still be addressed through traditional protest procedures. However, it was made clear that any entry that currently has a pending protest is NOT available to submit a declaration through CAPE, which seems to create hesitation with filing protective protests. Either way, importers and their representatives need to be assessing the risk and planning of action. Inaction could prove costly.

Key Takeaways for Importers

Categorize Entries Immediately
Importers should identify and classify entries into:

• Unliquidated entries (currently CAPE eligible)
• Entries ≤ 80 days post-liquidation (currently CAPE eligible)
• Entries within 180-day protest window (protective protest eligible)
• Entries beyond 180 days (potential risk, but addressed by CIT order) CAPE Eligibility is Limited Phase 1 is restricted, and CBP has not yet announced timing for broader “Phase 2” eligibility. Importers should not delay action in anticipation of expanded access.

Protests Remain a Safeguard
The CIT has not resolved whether refunds will be available for entries that are final and beyond the protest period. Filing a protest remains a prudent “belt and suspenders” approach where timing permits.

Prepare Claims Carefully Before Submission to Avoid Validation Errors

CAPE validations are strict. Entries will be rejected if they:

• Fall outside eligibility windows
• Do not contain qualifying IEEPA HTS provisions
• Are not properly associated with the importer account

Looking Ahead

CBP’s CAPE portal represents a meaningful advancement in processing IEEPA refund claims, but the current framework remains incomplete.

Importers should prioritize:

• Immediate identification of affected entries
• Submission of CAPE claims for eligible entries
• Preservation of protest rights where applicable At this time, there is no indication when additional CAPE filing phases will be implemented, and uncertainty remains for entries outside the current eligibility parameters.

Resources

• Developments in IEEPA Refund Litigation
  ;) ;) Report

  Related Posts

• Developments in IEEPA Refund Litigation

Latest Posts

• Strategies for Workforce Innovation with Dr. Minah Woo Video
• Developments in IEEPA Refund Process: CAPE Portal Now Live
• When “I Do” Turns Into “You Owe”
• Exploring Legal Trends in Social Media Liability Video See more »

DISCLAIMER: Because of the generality of this update, the information provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular situations.
Attorney Advertising.

©
Offit Kurman

Written by:

Offit Kurman Contact + Follow Janine Campanaro + Follow more less

PUBLISH YOUR CONTENT ON JD SUPRA

• ✔ Increased readership
• ✔ Actionable analytics
• ✔ Ongoing writing guidance Join more than 70,000 authors publishing their insights on JD Supra

Start Publishing »

Published In:

Administrative Appeals + Follow Court of International Trade + Follow Customs and Border Protection + Follow Department of Homeland Security (DHS) + Follow Economic Sanctions + Follow Filing Requirements + Follow Importers + Follow Imports + Follow International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) + Follow Protests + Follow Refunds + Follow Risk Management + Follow Tariffs + Follow Administrative Agency + Follow Antitrust & Trade Regulation + Follow International Trade + Follow more less

Offit Kurman on:

"My best business intelligence, in one easy email…"

Your first step to building a free, personalized, morning email brief covering pertinent authors and topics on JD Supra: Sign Up Log in ** By using the service, you signify your acceptance of JD Supra's Privacy Policy.* - hide - hide