CIT clears path for refunds and reliquidations on IEEPA tariffs

Background

With continued developments in US trade policy, please see this week’s key updates in our latest round-up on tariffs, global tax and beyond.

The week in summary

On 4 March 2026, the United States Court of International Trade issued a significant order in the case of Atmus Filtration, Inc. v. United States (Court No. 26-01259), directing US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to liquidate all entries subject to duties imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) without regard to those duties.  The ruling, handed down by Judge Richard K. Eaton, represents a major development for importers across the United States who have been burdened by IEEPA-related duties levied under various Executive Orders.

For unliquidated entries, the practical mechanics are simpler than a large-scale refund programme might suggest. Where IEEPA duty was only estimated at the time of entry and has not yet been finalised, CBP will simply liquidate the entry without the IEEPA amount meaning the duty charge never crystalises, and nothing further is owed.

Where an importer has already paid the estimated IEEPA duty on an unliquidated entry, the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) system should automatically issue a refund of the overpayment through the normal liquidation process once the entry is liquidated without the IEEPA portion meaning no special claim form or additional application is required.

In short, the Court has cleared the runway for a significant volume of entries to be corrected automatically through the ordinary liquidation process.

The greater complexity, and arguably the greater financial exposure, lies with entries that have already been liquidated with IEEPA duties applied.  While the Court's order addresses non-final liquidated entries by directing reliquidation, entries where liquidation has become final will require importers to navigate the protest process, further court orders, or whatever refund mechanism ultimately emerges.

This next chapter of the dispute is where the real monetary stakes reside, and importers with finally liquidated entries should monitor developments closely as the legal and administrative framework for those refunds continues to take shape.

Actions for business

Stemming from the ruling in the US CIT and the US Supreme Court ruling in February, businesses should continue to take the necessary action to understand that impact of the IEEPA refunds and what refunds will ultimately be due back. As such, the following key steps should be taken:

• Obtain import data from US CBP ACE system 
• Review data to understand liquidated vs unliquidated entries 
• Review status of liquidated entries to understand if they are final or open
• Quantify refund opportunity 

The above steps are vitally important where a business is stated as the importer of record and will be due the refund directly. Additionally, any business which, while not the importer of record, have borne costs associated with IEEPA tariffs should now be having commercial discussions with your US counterparts to determine their strategy for obtaining the necessary refunds.

We’re here to help you

Keeping up to date with US trade policies, trade agreements and new and existing tariff reviews which may lead to further tariff measures is crucial to assessing the risk to your supply chain and the impact these tariffs may have. Understanding your product portfolio and the impact that tariffs may have on your imports is an important first step. We are here to support your business with this analysis and navigating these choppy waters.