As reported in the April edition of Route, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has launched its new Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) system, which is the dedicated platform for processing International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) tariff refunds. IEEPA Tariffs were struck down by the US Supreme Court earlier this year.
Importers who are not self-filing their claims should contact their customs broker as soon as possible to get the process started and ensure they receive all refunds due. Note – any duties issued due to Section 232 (Steel, Aluminum, Copper, etc.) or Section 301 (China Tariff) are not subject to refunds. Refunds are limited to the IEEPA Tariff (also known as the Reciprocal Tariff) portion of duties paid.
CAPE is being released in phases, with components made available to the public as they are completed:
CAPE Phase I
In CAPE Phase I, CBP will process IEEPA tariff refunds only for unliquidated entries and liquidated entries for which CBP’s 90-day voluntary reliquidation period has not expired. Upon completion of processing, CBP will issue a refund, including interest (currently at a rate of 7% per annum), within an estimated 60-90 day processing time.Importers and their brokers can upload a CSV file listing the entries for which IEEPA refunds are requested. The CAPE system will then validate the CSV file against the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) and the relevant entry data to calculate the refund as the IEEPA duty paid, less the applicable Chapter 1–97 duty that would otherwise be owed.
Future CAPE Phases
CBP has not yet identified how it will process IEEPA tariff refunds for entries that do not fall within the parameters of CAPE Phase I (e.g. entries covered by an open protest, flagged for reconciliation, subject to a drawback claim, and those entries for which liquidation is final)
More information will be provided as it becomes available
To be eligible to use CAPE, the following prerequisites apply:
- The Importer of Record (IOR) or an authorized customs broker must have an established ACE Portal account.
- Refund recipients must use the ACE Portal account to provide CBP with bank account information for refunds.
- Refunds will be paid electronically by Automated Clearing House (ACH), and recipients must have a U.S. bank account information designated for refunds on file with CBP.
- If you do not have a US bank, Universal can act as your “Notify Party” – refunds will be directed to Universal and forwarded to you. If you cannot designate Universal as the Notify Party through the ACE portal, you can submit CBP Form 4811 in lieu of filing through the portal – Universal will file the 4811 with CBP on your behalf.
For more information or to have Universal Logistics file your IEEPA Tariff Refund requests, contact Brian Rowe, Director – Customs Consulting and Regulatory Affairs.
