April 20, 2026 was a big day for American importers. That’s the day the U.S. government officially opened its online tariff refund portal — and if your business paid import duties under President Trump’s IEEPA tariffs over the past year, you may be owed real money.
NPR called it “America’s hottest website,” and they weren’t being dramatic. Tens of thousands of business owners have been waiting months for this moment. The total amount up for grabs? An estimated $127 billion in Phase 1 alone, with up to $166 billion in refunds owed across all phases.
Here’s what you actually need to know — and do — to get your share.
What Happened and Why Refunds Are Available
In February 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that President Trump’s tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) were unconstitutional. The Court found that the president had overstepped Congressional authority when he set new import tax rates on products from nearly every country, citing the trade deficit as a national emergency.
The ruling covered two specific categories of IEEPA tariffs — both of which hit China-sourced goods hard. If the majority of your sourcing is from China, understanding exactly what was and wasn’t covered is critical to knowing what you can claim back.
What’s Covered by the Refund: The Two IEEPA Tariff Categories on Chinese Goods
1. The “Fentanyl” Tariffs (February–March 2025)
Starting February 4, 2025, the Trump administration invoked IEEPA to impose an initial 10% tariff on all goods imported from China, citing the flow of fentanyl precursor chemicals as a national emergency. That rate was raised to 20% on March 4, 2025. These tariffs applied broadly — essentially across the board on Chinese imports — with very few product-specific exemptions. If you were importing goods from China between February and April 2025 and paying an extra 10–20% levy that felt disconnected from what your products actually had to do with fentanyl, that’s exactly what this was. These tariffs are now ruled unconstitutional, and the duties paid are refundable.
2. The “Reciprocal” Tariffs (April 2025)
On April 2, 2025 — a date the White House called “Liberation Day” — Trump imposed a sweeping additional 10% baseline tariff on nearly all goods from all countries using IEEPA, citing the U.S. trade deficit as a national emergency. For China specifically, the rate escalated rapidly. After China retaliated, the administration raised the reciprocal tariff on Chinese goods dramatically before a temporary truce reduced the combined IEEPA burden on China to 30% (20% fentanyl + 10% reciprocal) by mid-2025.
Like the fentanyl tariffs, the reciprocal tariffs applied broadly to Chinese goods across virtually all product categories — consumer goods, industrial components, hardware, electronics accessories, home goods, textiles, furniture, toys, tools, and far more. The main exclusions were goods already covered by Section 232 (steel, aluminum, autos) and a narrow list of specific commodities. For most small businesses sourcing general merchandise, consumer products, or manufactured goods from China, these tariffs applied to nearly everything they were importing.
Both of these IEEPA tariff categories are what the Supreme Court struck down, and both are what the CAPE portal is now processing refunds for.
What Is NOT Covered: Section 301 Tariffs Remain in Full Force
This is the part that matters just as much as the refund opportunity — and it’s what many businesses are confused about. The Supreme Court ruling did not affect Section 301 tariffs, which rest on an entirely separate legal authority (the Trade Act of 1974) and have survived multiple court challenges. These tariffs are fully in effect today and will continue to be.
Section 301 tariffs were originally imposed between 2018 and 2019 across four tranches — commonly called Lists 1 through 4A — covering approximately $370 billion worth of Chinese imports at rates ranging from 7.5% to 25%. A 2024 USTR review then significantly raised rates in targeted strategic sectors. Here’s what your China-sourced goods are likely still subject to:
Industrial machinery and components (Lists 1 & 2 — 25%): This is one of the broadest categories. Engines, pumps, compressors, generators, machine tools, industrial equipment parts, and a wide range of manufactured components fall here. If you’re sourcing any kind of manufactured equipment or mechanical parts from China, Section 301 almost certainly applies.
Electronics and electrical equipment (Lists 1, 2 & 3 — 7.5% to 25%): Circuit boards, wiring harnesses, motors, transformers, lighting products, and many electronic components are covered. Note that smartphones and laptops remain on the suspended List 4B and are currently exempt — but most other consumer electronics and their components are not.
Furniture and home goods (List 3 — 25%): Furniture of all kinds, mattresses, lamps, kitchen and household articles — this list covers a massive share of what small businesses source from Chinese factories for U.S. retail.
Tools and hardware (Lists 1 & 3 — 25%): Hand tools, power tool parts, fasteners, locks, safes, and hardware items are broadly covered.
Plastics and rubber products (Lists 2 & 3 — 25%): Plastic articles, rubber goods, hoses, gaskets, and manufactured plastic components fall under Section 301.
Apparel, footwear, and textiles (List 4A — 7.5%): Clothing, garments, shoes, bags, and textile products were added in the final tranche. The 7.5% rate is lower than other lists but still represents a meaningful cost on high-volume apparel sourcing.
Chemicals and chemical products (Lists 1 & 2 — 25%): Industrial chemicals, coatings, adhesives, and specialty chemical products.
Strategic sector escalations (2024 USTR review — rates up to 100%): Certain product categories saw significant rate increases as part of a separate policy to reduce strategic dependence on Chinese manufacturing. These include electric vehicles (100%), lithium-ion batteries (25%), solar cells and panels (50%), semiconductors (50%), medical gloves (50–100%), syringes and needles (100%), ship-to-shore cranes (100%), and critical minerals including natural graphite and permanent magnets (25%).
The practical bottom line for China-sourcing businesses: The IEEPA refunds are real and worth pursuing. But they represent one layer of tariffs that is being unwound — not the entire tariff burden. For most goods imported from China, the Section 301 duties were already in place before the IEEPA tariffs were added on top of them. When you calculate what you’re owed in IEEPA refunds, you’re recovering the additional IEEPA layer. The Section 301 cost structure underneath it hasn’t changed.
This layering is also why accurate HTS classification matters so much right now — which we cover in depth in our companion article on whether you’re paying the right tariff amount in the first place.
For small businesses that absorbed those IEEPA costs rather than pass them on to customers, this refund is still a genuine opportunity to recover real capital.
The Portal: What It Is and How It Works
The refund system is called CAPE — Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries — and it runs through U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s existing ACE (Automated Commercial Environment) Secure Data Portal.
This is not a simple web form. It’s a structured filing system designed for importers and licensed customs brokers. Here’s how the process works in plain terms:
Who can file: Only the Importer of Record (IOR) — the business entity listed on the original customs entry — or the licensed customs broker who filed those entries on the importer’s behalf. If you were a retailer who paid higher wholesale prices because your supplier absorbed tariff costs, you are not eligible to file directly. That’s an important and painful distinction for many small businesses.
What to submit: Filers submit a “CAPE Declaration” — a CSV file listing the entry numbers for which IEEPA duties were paid. CBP has made the template available through the CAPE tab in the ACE portal.
How you get paid: All refunds are paid electronically via ACH (direct deposit). CBP no longer issues paper checks. Your bank account information must be on file in your ACE Portal account before a refund can be issued.
Timeline: Once your application is accepted, CBP has stated it will process refunds within 60 to 90 days — though complications can push that timeline out.
Your Step-by-Step Action Plan
Step 1: Confirm you are the Importer of Record
Pull your customs entry documents — specifically your CBP Form 7501 (Entry Summary). The name on that form is the IOR. If it’s your business, you’re eligible to file. If your customs broker is the IOR, work with them directly.
Step 2: Set up or verify your ACE Portal account
Go to CBP’s website and access the ACE Secure Data Portal. You need an active account with the “Importer” sub-account enabled. This is a required step — no portal account, no refund. Many smaller importers have never set one up because their broker handled everything. Do it now.
Step 3: Enroll in ACH refunds
Inside your ACE Portal account, navigate to the ACH Refund Enrollment section and enter your bank account information. Without this step, CBP literally cannot send you money. This is the single most common reason refunds get delayed or rejected.
Step 4: Compile your entry list carefully
Work with your customs broker or freight forwarder to pull a complete list of entry numbers where IEEPA tariffs were paid. Cross-reference against your commercial invoices and shipping documents. Legal experts are warning that a single ineligible entry in your declaration can cause an entire batch to be rejected. Be meticulous here — it’s worth the extra time.
Step 5: Understand Phase 1 eligibility limits
The current phase covers:
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- Unliquidated entries — duties that have been assessed but not yet finalized by CBP
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- Entries liquidated within the past 80 days
If your earlier shipments fall outside this window, don’t panic. CBP has confirmed additional phases are coming to handle older, finalized entries. Phase 1 is just the starting point.
Step 6: File your CAPE Declaration
Upload your completed CSV file through the CAPE tab in the ACE Portal. Each declaration can include up to 9,999 entries, and you can file multiple declarations if needed.
Watch Out for These Pitfalls
The portal may be slow on launch. With 330,000 eligible importers and $127 billion at stake, traffic will be significant. If you hit errors or delays, don’t panic — just be persistent and document your attempts.
The refund process is not automatic. The government is not sending checks. You must file to receive your money. Many businesses will simply miss out by not taking action.
Retailers are in a complicated spot. As hardware store owner Joe Kimray of North Carolina put it in an NPR interview: “As a retailer, I didn’t pay tariffs directly. However, I did pay them indirectly in the form of higher wholesale prices.” Unfortunately, that indirect hit doesn’t qualify for a direct refund. Keep an eye on class-action lawsuits against major suppliers, as some of those cases could eventually benefit downstream businesses.
The administration may appeal. The Trump administration has signaled it may seek to reinstate tariffs through other legal mechanisms, including Section 122 of the Trade Act. Your refund is tied to entries already paid — that doesn’t change — but the broader trade environment remains in flux.
A Word on Timing and Cash Flow
One importer featured in national coverage, a cigar company that paid $34,000 in IEEPA tariffs last year, summed up what many small business owners are feeling: “A refund process that takes several months to complete doesn’t solve the cash flow problem it is supposed to fix.”
That’s real. Don’t count your refund as received capital until it actually hits your account. Avoid making financial commitments against anticipated refunds until the timeline is clearer. For Phase 1 filers, 60 to 90 days is the stated window — but building in a buffer is prudent.
The Bottom Line
This is the largest tariff refund process in U.S. history. For many small businesses, the amounts at stake are meaningful — not a windfall, but real money that was unnecessarily paid. The burden is on you to claim it. That’s frustrating, but it’s the reality of how the system is built.
Act now. Set up your ACE account, enroll in ACH, compile your entries, and file. If you work with a customs broker, contact them today — they may be able to file on your behalf and have the infrastructure to move quickly.
Need help evaluating your import costs or working through the refund process? SureSource’s trade specialists are here to help. Contact us to get started.