Update On CAPE Phase 3 Duty Refunds From U.S. Customs And Border Protection

On September 15, 2026, in Free Style World, Inc. v. United States – the lead litigation dealing with tariff refunds for duties collected under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) – U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) declared that importers who have received a court order for IEEPA duty refunds will become eligible to file for those refunds starting on October 6, 2026. These court orders concern IEEPA duty refunds for entries that were liquidated for more than 80 days, known as finally liquidated entries. 

These IEEPA duties were struck down by the Supreme Court in February 2026, and since then, CBP has been developing and rolling out phases of a refund application functionality known as the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE). This new round of duty refund eligibility constitutes Phase 3.

Phase 3 follows several developmental delays and was previously expected to be released at the end of July 2026. Nevertheless, this latest phase follows Phase 1 (implemented April 2026 and allowing refunds for all entries that were unliquidated or that had been liquidated within the past 80 days) and Phase 2 (implemented June 2026 and allowing importers to request IEEPA duty refunds on entries that were unliquidated (or that have liquidated within the preceding 80 days) and that were flagged for reconciliation, but for which no Reconciliation Entry had been filed). 

Although Phase 1 and Phase 2 cover many entries that were subject to IEEPA duties, importers of finally liquidated entries have been unable to request their refunds through CAPE. CBP’s announcement and scheduled October implementation are set to enable qualifying importers of finally liquidated entries to receive their refunds through CAPE. 

To receive a refund for finally liquidated entries at this stage, CBP has taken the position that the importer must have secured a court order directing CBP to reliquidate finally liquidated entries from the US Court of International Trade (CIT). Without such an order, CBP continues to assert that it cannot issue refunds for finally liquidated entries. Currently, many importers that file suit at the CIT are being granted relief in the form of specific orders that direct CBP to refund IEEPA duties paid on finally liquidated entries. According to CBP’s declaration, parties that have a refund order from the CIT may file for a refund on CAPE beginning on October 6. As a result, although litigation remains pending, receiving a specific court order for IEEPA duty refunds from the CIT is currently the only method of securing refunds for finally liquidated entries as part of Phase 3.

Buchanan’s team of international trade and national security attorneys, economists, accounting analysts and government relations professionals is closely monitoring developments and is ready to help U.S. manufacturers and importers with U.S. customs laws, trade policy and all issues connected with the IEEPA tariffs. Our team has extensive experience before the CIT is available to assist in securing orders for IEEPA refunds.