TRADE ALERT – IMPORTS
HEADLINE	DOJ Announces Intent to Appeal Some Refunds
DATE	June 1, 2026
AGENCY	U.S. Customs and Border Protection
EFFECTIVE DATE	May 29, 2026
SUMMARY	On May 26, 2026, CBP posted an FAQ suggesting that claims for the recovery of IEEPA duties paid on entries flagged for reconciliation may be included in submissions through the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (“CAPE”) system in phase 1.   Additionally, on May 29, 2026, the government filed a motion in V.O.S. Selections, Inc. v. Trump at the Court of International Trade (“CIT”) in which the government identifies three categories of entries subject to IEEPA tariffs for which the government articulates differing legal positions. The government states that CBP is already refunding approximately $85 billion in IEEPA tariffs on unliquidated or nonfinal entries, but that the government intends to appeal the CIT’s universal injunction requiring refunds on finally liquidated entries for importers who have not filed actions at the CIT.   These developments underscore the continued importance of importers to take protective action to preserve the right to recover IEEPA duties.   Action Items for Importers:   1) Establish an ACE account and ACH refund capabilities with CBP. 2) File CAPE declarations for all eligible entries, including entries flagged for reconciliation. 3) File a protective action at the CIT to protect all finally liquidated entries. 4) Monitor liquidation and protest deadlines; file protests near the end of the 180-day protest period.
BACKGROUND	On February 20, 2026, the President revoked the Executive Orders that directed the imposition of the IEEPA tariffs. On March 4, 2026, the CIT issued an order (amended March 5, 2026) directing CBP to refund all IEEPA duties. The CIT stayed this order to allow CBP to develop the CAPE system.  Since April 20, 2025, CBP has been receiving and processing refund claims that have been submitted through phase 1 of the CAPE system.   Phase 1 is limited to entries that are unliquidated or up to 80 days past their liquidation date. Phase 1 will also process entries with liquidation status of “suspended,” “extended,” or “under review.”   However, phase 1 will not cover entries in the following categories: • Entry Type 09 – Reconciliation Summary; • Entries on a drawback claim; • Entries covered by an open protest; • Entries not filed in ACE and entries without a liquidation status in ACE; • Entries subject to AD/CVD for which liquidation is pending in accordance with 19 U.S.C § 1504(d); and • Entries for which liquidation is final. Based on the information presented, “finality of liquidation” is based on the 90 day voluntary reliquidation period provided to CBP under 19 U.S.C. 1501. CBP is using 80 days, rather than 90 days to allow for processing.
DETAILS	IEEPA CLAIMS FILING & THE CIT On May 29, 2026, the government filed a motion in V.O.S. Selections, Inc. v. Trump that provides its most detailed public articulation to date of how it views its obligation to refund the IEEPA duties. The government divided the entries into 3 groups. Group 1: Entries That Are Either Unliquidated or Not finally Liquidated Claims for refunds on most of these entries may be submitted to the CAPE system in Phase 1, with minor exceptions for those entries claiming drawback, subject to antidumping/countervailing duties, or those without a scheduled liquidation date. Category 2: Finally Liquidated Entries with Pending CIT Cases CBP notes that it has no authority to reliquidate or refund money on these entries without an importer-specific court order. Once CBP has completed programmatic changes for other categories of refunds that the CIT has directed it to prioritize, CBP states that it will develop a CAPE process to refund duties to those importers who have an action before the court. The CIT has so far declined to issue such importer-specific relief. Category 3: Finally Liquidated Entries without Pending CIT Cases The third category — and the one of most concern — involves tariffs paid on entries that are finally liquidated and for which importers have not filed cases at the CIT. The government stated its intention to appeal the order issued by the court requiring them to refund all duties, stating that the CIT is not authorized to issue such a universal injunction. The government also intends to seek a stay of the injunction except as to the particular importer plaintiffs in each case in which the CIT has entered the injunction. Implications for the June 9 Hearing and the Stay The CIT has set a June 9, 2026, hearing to consider whether to lift the stay it has maintained on the universal injunction. CLAIMING THE RECOVERY OF IEEPA DUTIES PAID ON ENTRIES THAT HAVE BEEN FLAGGED FOR RECONCILIATION On May 26, CBP posted an FAQ regarding IEEPA claims that stated:   “CBP is currently working on a phased solution to process unliquidated or liquidated (not more than 80 days beyond the liquidation date) entries flagged for reconciliation (Entry Types 01, 02, and 06) that are included on a CAPE declaration, and for which an Entry Type 09 has not yet been filed at the time of CAPE acceptance. The CAPE process does not prevent an entry from being reconciled; however, CBP suggests that the trade community hold reconciliation filings (Entry Type 09) unless the reconciliation filing deadline is close to expiring (less than 30 days) so that the CAPE declaration can be filed and processed first. CBP is also working on a solution for situations where the reconciliation entry is already on file. As these phases are deployed, CBP will issue Cargo Systems Messaging Service (CSMS) messages providing filing requirements and guidance.” While not explicitly stated, this FAQ suggests that entries of type 01, 02, and 06 may be submitted to the CAPE system notwithstanding the fact that the entry has been flagged for reconciliation. Because the ability to recover duties on finally liquidated entries is likely to be significantly more difficult and costly, it is recommended that importers maximize the number of entries submitted through CAPE, including those entries that have been flagged for reconciliation.   The government’s filing makes no statement about the handling of protests. We anticipate that protests will result in the refund of IEEPA duties, but we also expect that this will take more time to resolve, especially for importers who have not filed an action at the CIT. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS FOR IMPORTERS 1) File CAPE claims on all entries that are either unliquidated or for which liquidation has not become final (i.e. entries that liquidated within the past 80 days). 2) Review ACE data to determine the amount of IEEPA duties contained in finally liquidated entries. 3) File an action at the CIT if you have a significant amount of IEEPA duties paid against finally liquidated entries. 4) Protest any finally liquidated entry before the expiration of the 180-day protest period. We additionally reiterate the importance of ensuring that you have an active account on CBP’s Automated Commercial Environment (“ACE”) and that you are registered for ACH Refund processing. Continue to watch this space for further developments and contact us with any questions about the impact on your business.
BASIS	N/A
CITE	CBP FAQ on IEEPA recoveries   CBP CSMS # 68315804 (April 10, 2026): Introduction – Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) for IEEPA Refunds, April 20, 2026 Deployment   CBP Trade Information Notice Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) Phase 1 (April 8, 2026)   CBP IEEPA Duty Refunds

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