US CBP CAPE Phase 2

Dear Readers,

CBP opened Phase 2 of the CAPE refund tool in the ACE portal on June 29. If you had refund entries in Phase 1 that were rejected due to liquidation, now is the time to re-apply for those declarations.

What it covers

Phase 2 adds entries flagged for reconciliation — entry types 01, 02 and 06 where the type 09 reconciliation entry has not yet been filed. Same 80-day limitation otherwise, and it runs alongside Phase 1 rather than replacing it. CBP puts the Phase 2 pool at roughly $28.7 billion across about 2.8 million entries, on top of the roughly $95 billion already accepted into CAPE.

How it works

You submit a declaration with a CSV listing up to 9,999 entry numbers. ACE validates them, strips the IEEPA Chapter 99 lines, recalculates duty as if IEEPA had never applied, and pays out as a single consolidated ACH deposit with statutory interest. Figure 60 to 90 days from acceptance to money.

That is a meaningfully better path than filing entry by entry through the protest process, which is what this would have been otherwise.

Phase 3 is the one to watch

Phase 3 covers finally liquidated entries and is expected around the end of July. It is also the murky one. CBP's stated position is that it cannot refund finally liquidated entries unless the importer of record has filed suit at the Court of International Trade — and the administration appealed the refund process in June. So both the scope of Phase 3 and who will actually be eligible remain open.

If you have significant IEEPA exposure sitting in finally liquidated entries, that is worth a conversation with counsel now rather than in August.

— The Chain Logic Team