The Supreme Court's IEEPA Tariff Ruling — What It Means for Importers

1. What happened

On February 20, 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump (consolidated with Trump v. V.O.S. Selections, Inc.) that the President does not have authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose tariffs.

The ruling invalidated two distinct tariff programs imposed under IEEPA in 2025:

• The February 2025 "trafficking" tariffs on imports from Canada, Mexico, and China (10–25% rates depending on country and category)
• The April 2025 "reciprocal" or "Liberation Day" tariffs on imports from most countries worldwide (10% baseline plus country-specific add-ons reaching 50%+ in some cases)

Together, these tariffs collected an estimated $166 billion+ from approximately 330,000 U.S. importers between February 2025 and February 2026.

The Court did not order automatic refunds. The decision invalidated the legal authority for the tariffs going forward, but leaves the refund mechanics to the existing CBP and trade-court procedures.

2. Which tariffs are refundable

Tariffs imposed under the invalidated IEEPA authority are eligible for refund. On entry documents, these appear under HTSUS Chapter 99 headings:

• HTSUS 9903.01 — the February 2025 "trafficking" tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China
• HTSUS 9903.02 — the April 2025 "reciprocal" / "Liberation Day" tariffs (broad, hit most countries)
• Brazil and India supplemental tariffs imposed August 2025 under the same authority

If your entry documents show duties paid under these headings between February 1, 2025 and February 23, 2026, those amounts are potentially recoverable.

3. Which tariffs are NOT affected

The ruling addresses IEEPA only. Several other tariff regimes remain in force and are not refundable through this case:

• Section 232 tariffs (steel, aluminum, autos, copper) — issued under the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, separate authority. Still in effect.
• Section 301 tariffs (the original China-specific tariffs from 2018-2019) — issued under the Trade Act of 1974. Still in effect.
• Section 122 surcharge — a new 10–15% temporary import surcharge imposed in February 2026 as a partial replacement for IEEPA tariffs. Still in effect.
• Anti-dumping and countervailing duties (AD/CVD) — separate statutory regime, not affected.
• Standard MFN duties — the regular tariff rates that have always applied. Not affected.

If your tariff exposure was primarily Section 232 or 301, those amounts are not recoverable through this ruling. Many importers paid both — only the IEEPA portion (HTSUS 9903.01 and 9903.02) is refundable.

4. How the refund process works

Refunds are not automatic. Every importer must affirmatively file. There are three primary paths, depending on the entry's status:

Path A — ACE / CAPE Declaration

CBP is building a refund-submission mechanism — referred to as CAPE (Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries) — inside its existing Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) portal. CAPE is not yet generally live; the Court of International Trade has ordered CBP to begin processing refunds and the build is underway. Importers who already have an ACE account, ACH banking registered, and entry data reconciled will be at the front of the line when CAPE opens for general filing. Most importers haven't completed even the basic ACE/ACH setup.

Path B — Section 1514 Protest

For liquidated entries outside the CAPE Phase 1 window, importers can file a protest under 19 U.S.C. § 1514. The deadline is 180 days from each entry's liquidation date. Miss the deadline on an entry, and that recovery is permanently lost.

Path C — Court of International Trade Action

For certain entries — particularly those past the protest window or where there's a contested legal question — direct litigation in the Court of International Trade under 28 U.S.C. § 1581(i) is an option. The CIT window is two years from cause of action.

The three paths at a glance

Path	Trigger	Deadline	Best for	Key risk
Path A — ACE / CAPE Declaration	CBP opens CAPE inside ACE for general filing	Not yet announced by CBP	Unliquidated entries; entries recently liquidated	Path is not yet generally live — cannot be the only filing strategy on entries already at risk
Path B — Section 1514 Protest	Each entry's liquidation date	180 days from each entry's liquidation	Liquidated entries within the 180-day protest window	Recovery is permanently forfeited if the window closes before filing
Path C — Court of International Trade	Cause of action accrues	2 years from accrual under 28 U.S.C. § 1581(i)	Entries past the protest window; contested legal questions	Higher cost and longer timeline (full federal litigation)

Most importers' situations involve a mix of entries across these paths. Choosing the right path per entry — and filing within the right window — is what determines actual recovery.

5. The deadlines that matter

The most important number is 180 days from each entry's liquidation date — the §1514 protest window. Once that window closes on an entry, that entry's refund is permanently unrecoverable through the protest path.

Because liquidation happens 314 days after entry by default, and many 2025 entries are liquidating right now (mid-2026), the protest windows are running on a daily basis. An importer who waits six months loses six months of recoverable entries.

6. Who can claim — the three tiers of recovery

The Supreme Court ruling opened IEEPA refund recovery to three distinct groups, not just the businesses listed as importers on customs paperwork. Most refund efforts in market today only chase Tier 1. The partner firm pursues all three.

Tier 1 — Direct Importers (Importer of Record)

Your business is listed as the Importer of Record on CBP Form 7501, Box 26. You either imported directly or worked with a customs broker. You paid IEEPA duties under your own entity ID, visible on entry documents under HTSUS 9903.01 or 9903.02. Recovery path: §1514 protests, ACE/CAPE filings, and CIT actions handled by the partner firm. Typical fit: $3M+ annual imports, or $1.5M+ if China-heavy.

Tier 2 — Courier-imported businesses

Your business brought goods into the country via FedEx, UPS, or DHL. On some or all of those shipments, the courier — not your business — appears as the Importer of Record on customs paperwork. The IEEPA money still belongs to your business; it just has to be claimed via the courier on your behalf. Recovery path: Claim through the courier of record, coordinated by the partner firm. Typical fit: Same volume thresholds as Tier 1. Especially common in e-commerce, direct-to-consumer, and lean-team businesses that didn't engage a dedicated customs broker.

Tier 3 — Pass-through buyers (largest opportunity)

Your business bought goods from U.S.-based suppliers, distributors, or manufacturers who imported them — and those suppliers passed the IEEPA tariff cost to your business in one of two ways:

• Itemized on invoices. A line item labeled "tariff," "IEEPA surcharge," "duty pass-through," or similar, broken out on the supplier's invoice.
• Buried in a price increase. Mid-2025 price hikes of 5–25% on imported goods, often without explicit mention of tariffs. Many suppliers raised prices rather than itemizing to mask the tariff impact.

Your business is not on customs paperwork — but the IEEPA dollars left your bank account just the same. The partner firm represents your interest in a legal demand on the supplier, while preserving the underlying commercial relationship wherever possible.

Recovery path: Legal demand on the supplier; if needed, escalation through trade-court process. Typical fit: Mid-to-large businesses spending $1.5M+ annually with U.S. suppliers who import. Restaurant groups, retailers, distributors, manufacturers buying through supply chains, food and beverage operators buying through national distributors. Estimated affected pool: approximately 1 million additional U.S. businesses beyond the ~330,000 direct importers.

7. What you should do now

If your business imported goods between February 2025 and February 2026:

1. Don't assume refunds are coming automatically. They aren't. CBP processes refunds only for importers who file.
2. Don't assume your customs broker is handling it. Most brokers handle ongoing imports day-to-day. Few have specialized in post-ruling recovery procedures.
3. Get an assessment quickly. The longer you wait, the more entries' protest windows close. A free 30-minute consultation tells you what's recoverable for your business and which paths apply to your situation.

For more specific questions — eligibility, thresholds, document requirements, what to do if your broker already filed, the FedEx/UPS/DHL Tier-2 case, refund timelines, audit handling — see the FAQ.