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CBP Says CAPE Phase 3 Will Open On 6 October For Some IEEPA Tariff Refund Claims

Published November 4, 2026

U.S. Customs and Border Protection will deploy CAPE Phase 3 on 6 October 2026, opening the refund process for certain finally liquidated International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) duties, but only for importers that are plaintiffs in pending Court of International Trade (CIT) cases and that have provided a valid importer of record (IOR) number to CBP. The phase is not a general refund route for all importers; it is a court-ordered reliquidation process tied to specific litigation, according to the primary statements reviewed. Troutman Pepper Locke, Court order, CBP refund guidance

What CBP Is Changing On 6 October

The most consequential verified development is the planned launch of Phase 3 of CBP’s Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) refund system for IEEPA duties. In a sworn declaration filed on 15 September 2026 in Freestyle World, Inc. v. U.S. Customs and Border Protection, CBP Executive Director Brandon Lord said CBP would “deploy CAPE Phase 3” on 6 October 2026. He added that Phase 3 covers “finally liquidated entries filed by plaintiffs for which the Court has ordered reliquidation,” and that plaintiffs who submitted a valid IOR number by 30 July 2026 could file CAPE declarations from that date. Later submitters, he said, would receive additional instructions. Declaration of Brandon Lord

In plain English, “finally liquidated” means the entry has passed CBP’s usual 90-day window for reliquidation and is normally beyond CBP’s own administrative reopening power. The court order gave CBP the authority it said it needed to handle those older entries through CAPE. Court order

Who Can Use Phase 3 — And Who Cannot

The evidence package points to a narrow eligibility rule: Phase 3 is for importers of record that are plaintiffs in pending CIT IEEPA cases and whose entries fall within the scope of a reliquidation order. The July order applied to plaintiffs in roughly 3,700 IEEPA cases and directed CBP to reliquidate entries that had been liquidated for more than 80 days, including finally liquidated entries. Court order, Thompson Hine summary

That means the process is not open, as a category, to non-plaintiffs. Secondary follow-up commentary is consistent on that point, but the key point comes from the primary declaration and court order: Phase 3 is tied to a specific court-ordered reliquidation framework. Non-plaintiffs do not gain automatic access simply because they paid IEEPA duties. Declaration of Brandon Lord, Court order

Why This Matters For Importers

For companies with IEEPA exposure, the practical effect is that timing and litigation posture now determine the refund route. The sources describe Phase 3 as a way to process older entries that had previously fallen outside the earlier CAPE phases. But that relief still runs through a court order, not through a broad administrative reopening of all entries. CBP refund guidance, Snell & Wilmer

CBP also said Phase 3 is designed to remove only IEEPA duties. The Troutman alert says CBP delayed Phase 3 so it could add validations ensuring reliquidation leaves other charges intact, including Section 232 tariffs, Section 301 duties, antidumping and countervailing duties (AD/CVD), and fees such as the merchandise processing fee and harbour maintenance fee. That matters because it prevents traders from assuming the entire duty bill on an entry will be recalculated. Troutman Pepper Locke

Refunds, Protests And What Remains Unclear

One open question for traders is the treatment of entries tied to protests or later litigation steps. The evidence package shows CBP’s existing guidance still discusses earlier CAPE phases and future deployments, but it does not publish a universal public template for Phase 3 filings. The primary declaration says plaintiffs who missed the 30 July IOR deadline will receive additional instructions, but it does not give a date for those instructions. Declaration of Brandon Lord, CBP refund guidance

The sources also make clear that CBP has been working through a substantial refund pipeline. Snell & Wilmer reported that by the time of its July 2026 update, billions of dollars in IEEPA refunds had already been accepted for processing or sent to the Treasury for disbursement, while a separate portion of refunds had stalled because importers or their designees had not provided ACH information. That makes account setup a practical issue for payment, even where the refund itself is otherwise approved. Snell & Wilmer

What Traders Should Check Next

For businesses with possible IEEPA refunds, the immediate checks supported by the record are straightforward:

  • Confirm whether you are a plaintiff in a pending CIT IEEPA case.
  • Check whether CBP received a valid IOR number and whether it was submitted by 30 July 2026.
  • Review entry liquidation dates so you know whether an entry is finally liquidated and therefore part of the Phase 3 universe.
  • Verify ACH payment information is on file if you expect a refund payment.

For readers who need a broader explanation of how CBP’s refund process works, Export Import Academy has previously explained the difference between the importer of record and the customs broker in the refund chain. Who Gets The Tariff Refund In The USA?

That distinction matters here. The primary materials reviewed refer to importers of record, plaintiffs and court-ordered reliquidation. They do not say a customs broker becomes the refund recipient simply by acting as an agent.

Sources