US Customs Launches CAPE Tariff Refund Portal; $166B in IEEPA Refunds Owed

NPR reported on April 19, 2026 that US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is preparing to launch the CAPE (Customs Automated Protest and Entry) functionality within its ACE (Automated Commercial Environment) system — providing importers their first mechanism to file for refunds on tariffs paid under the IEEPA tariff regime struck down by the Supreme Court on February 20, 2026. CBP estimates total refund liability at approximately $166 billion — the full value of tariffs collected under IEEPA from its 2025 imposition through the Supreme Court ruling. The portal (launching April 20–21) is expected to trigger a massive surge in refund applications from US importers who bore the cost of the 10% baseline global tariff, 145% China tariffs, and other IEEPA-authorized rates. Section 122 tariffs imposed in the February 24 pivot remain legally distinct and are subject to ongoing Court of International Trade litigation. Penn Wharton (April 15) confirmed the effective tariff rate under Section 122 at 8.9% overall; China faces a 31.6% effective rate. The $166B refund is equivalent to roughly 6.4% of annual federal revenues and represents one of the largest single-liability customs events in US history.