IEEPA Tariff Refund Tracker (2026)
Data updated August 21, 2026 · Sector-level estimates from public CBP/court sources — not legal or tax advice
After the Supreme Court struck down the IEEPA tariffs on February 20, 2026, roughly $166 billion in collected duties became refundable to about 330,000 importers across ~53 million entries. CBP is returning the money through its CAPE process (live since April 20, 2026). As of August 21, 2026, about $132.5 billion had entered CAPE for processing and roughly $106.6 billion had been certified and sent to Treasury for disbursement (including interest) — about 64% of the pool now paid.
~$166 billion
Total IEEPA duties collected
The full refundable pool, across ~330,000 importers and ~53 million entries (April 2025–Feb 2026).
~$132.5 billion
Entered CAPE for processing
Potential and certified refunds that had entered CBP's CAPE platform as of 3pm ET August 21, 2026 (26.4 million entries), per CBP's update to the Court of International Trade — a subset of the pool, still being validated.
~$106.6 billion
Repaid to importers
Certified and sent to Treasury for disbursement as of August 21, 2026, per CBP's update to the CIT — about 64% of the pool, up from $100 billion on August 4. About $1.7 billion (22,170 refunds) remains stuck on missing importer ACH banking details.
~330,000
Importers owed
Importers of Record that paid IEEPA duties and are eligible to file.
~53 million
Entries involved
Customs entries that carried IEEPA reciprocal or fentanyl tariffs.
6–7%
Statutory interest
Refunds accrue interest — 7% for individuals, 6% for corporations — compounded daily under 19 CFR 24.36.
How Much of the Refund Pool Has Been Paid?
Collected (the full pool)$166B
CAPE claims accepted$132.5B
Repaid to importers$106.6B
Bars are proportional to the ~$166B collected. Figures as of August 21, 2026; they move as CBP processes claims.
CAPE Refund Phases
| Phase | Timing | Covers |
|---|---|---|
| Phase 1LIVE | Launched April 20, 2026 | Unliquidated entries and entries within 80 days of liquidation — the cleanest, most automatable cases. |
| Phase 2LIVE | Live — opened June 29, 2026 | Reconciliation entries (types 01/02/06 flagged for a not-yet-filed type 09, limited to unliquidated or within-80-days entries) and antidumping/countervailing-duty (AD/CVD) entries. |
| Phase 3UPCOMING | Delayed — no new date set (as of Aug 25, 2026) | Finally-liquidated entries (~$11.4B). CBP told the CIT on August 25 it has temporarily delayed deployment to add validations so reliquidation doesn't inadvertently alter non-IEEPA duties on those entries; Phase 1 and 2 processing are unaffected. Government contends only importers who filed at the Court of International Trade are eligible; its appeal of the CIT's universal-refund orders is pending at the Federal Circuit (opening brief filed Aug 10), and a class-certification motion (argued Aug 6) seeks to cover the rest. |
What Is and Isn’t Refundable
Refundable
- IEEPA reciprocal tariffs (the country-specific 'Liberation Day' rates)
- IEEPA fentanyl/trafficking tariffs (China, Canada, Mexico)
Not Refundable
- Section 232 tariffs (steel, aluminum, copper, autos) — not struck down
- Section 301 tariffs (China) — not struck down
- Section 122 (the 10% replacement tariff) — separate authority, in effect pending appeal
- Standard MFN base duties
Refund Timeline
Feb 4, 2025
China fentanyl IEEPA tariffs take effect — start of the refund-eligible window for China.
Mar 4, 2025
Canada/Mexico trafficking IEEPA tariffs take effect (eligible window start for those origins).
Apr 2025
Reciprocal ('Liberation Day') IEEPA tariffs take effect (10%–49% by country).
Feb 20, 2026
Supreme Court rules 6-3 (Learning Resources v. Trump / V.O.S. Selections) that IEEPA does not authorize tariffs — duties become refundable.
Feb 24, 2026
10% Section 122 tariff replaces IEEPA (a separate authority; not refundable).
Apr 20, 2026
CBP launches CAPE Phase 1 in the ACE Portal.
May 11–12, 2026
First ACH refund payments hit importer bank accounts.
Jun 29, 2026
CAPE Phase 2 opens (reconciliation + AD/CVD entries).
Jul 13, 2026
Treasury data: $49.1B refunded in June alone — more than double the month's $23.6B in new tariff collections; refund wave widens the FY2026 deficit for the first time.
Jul 10, 2026
CBP court declaration: $86.3B repaid to importers, $121.75B accepted for processing — over half the pool now paid.
Jul 24, 2026
Section 122 tariff expired by operation of law at its 150-day statutory limit; Congress did not act to extend it.
Late Jul 2026
CAPE Phase 3 originally expected (finally liquidated entries, ~$11.4B) — eligibility contested in the government's Federal Circuit appeal.
Aug 4, 2026
CBP declaration (Freestyle World v. United States): $100B certified and sent to Treasury for disbursement — about 60% of the $166B pool; $128.68B had entered CAPE as of July 31.
Aug 10, 2026
DOJ files its opening Federal Circuit brief seeking to vacate the CIT's order directing reliquidation of finally-liquidated IEEPA entries.
Aug 21, 2026
CBP update to CIT: $132.5B accepted for CAPE processing (26.4M entries), $106.6B certified and sent to Treasury — about 64% of the $166B pool.
Aug 25, 2026
CBP tells CIT it has delayed CAPE Phase 3 deployment (finally liquidated entries) to add validations; no new launch date announced.
Cite this page
Free to cite with attribution.
Tariffs Tool. “IEEPA Tariff Refund Tracker (2026).” Updated August 21, 2026. https://www.tariffstool.com/tariff-refund-tracker
Claiming a refund? See our tariff refunds hub, the step-by-step CAPE filing guide, the July 2026 payout status update, the CAPE Phase 3 guide, and the CAPE refund status tracker. Estimate your number with the tariff calculator.
Sources: U.S. Customs and Border Protection — IEEPA Duty Refunds · Supreme Court — Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump (No. 24-1287) · U.S. Court of International Trade