On March 31, 2026, CBP provided the Court of International Trade with a status update on the development of the CAPE program and its approach to refund administration. Based on this update, CBP has clarified that Phase 1 of CAPE will not accept the following categories of entries:
- Entries flagged for reconciliation
- Entries designated on a drawback claim
- Entries covered by an open protest
- Entries not filed in ACE or without a liquidation status in ACE
- Entries subject to AD/CVD where Commerce has issued liquidation instructions and liquidation is pending under 19 U.S.C. § 1504(d)
- Entries that fall outside CBP’s 90‑day window for voluntary reliquidation
CBP also indicated that CAPE claims may take up to 45 days for validation, during which time CBP may conduct additional reviews, including:
- Use of enhanced tools and validations to ensure compliance
- Revenue‑enforcement reviews where an entry on a CAPE declaration has an outstanding non‑IEEPA bill
Updated Recommendation
Given this new information, you may consider waiting until the end of the 90‑day voluntary reliquidation period before filing any protests.
Importers should continue to utilize their ACE accounts to establish ACH refund capability, run reports and monitor liquidation dates.
We will continue to monitor CBP’s implementation of CAPE and will advise as further developments unfold.