The portal to apply for tariff refunds is open and will remain open indefinitely, though the Jewelers Vigilance Committee is encouraging jewelry businesses to submit their claims sooner rather than later.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) opened the portal last Monday, April 20, and the process of applying to get money back is “fairly simple,” JVC President and General Counsel Sara Yood told National Jeweler on Monday.

Peter Klestadt, a senior partner and trade law specialist with New York law firm GDLSK, said on a webinar held by JVC last week that companies “can’t expect [the refund process] to be perfect, [but] the lion’s share should go smoothly.”

As noted during the webinar, refunds are available only for duties paid under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA.

President Donald Trump began imposing higher tariffs citing his authority under IEEPA in early 2025, beginning with Canada, Mexico, and China.

In April 2025, the president expanded the scope of his emergency tariffs, placing a 10 percent across-the-board import tax on goods entering the U.S. from nearly everywhere, as well as higher “reciprocal” tariffs on imports from a long list of countries.

Numerous small businesses sued the Trump administration over the tariffs, and the case made it all the way to the Supreme Court.

In February, the court ruled the president’s IEEPA tariffs were unconstitutional but remanded the issue of refunds—meaning if and how they would be paid—to the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT).

CIT issued a series of orders beginning March 4 that directed CBP to refund IEEPA tariffs.

In response, the agency developed a refund processing system within its Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) called the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries system, or CAPE.

To begin the refund process through CAPE, companies must have an ACE Secure Data Portal account and set up ACH payments, as refunds will not be issued via check.

Yood said most companies have these accounts already, but those that do not can apply for one.

Those who have trouble applying can contact ACE support via email at ACE.Support@cbp.dhs.gov or call 866-530-4172.

Klestadt noted during the webinar that CBP has made the support line a 24-hour hotline.

He suggested calling during off-hours, such as between midnight and 1 a.m., to avoid long wait times.

Currently, CBP is in what it’s calling Phase I of the refund process, which includes only entries that have not yet been liquidated or have been liquidated within the past 80 days.

Liquidation, Yood explained Monday, is a term used by CBP that means finalization or settlement of a customs bill.

Companies pay an estimated tariff when they bring goods in the U.S. It is not until about 10 months later that the bill is settled and the entry is liquidated.

Yood said the earliest tariffs Trump imposed under IEEPA, like the fentanyl tariffs placed on Chinese imports, are past the 80-day window.

However, a significant portion of the reciprocal tariffs announced on “Liberation Day” in April 2025 and quickly paused are still within that 80-day window for a Phase I refund.

“We are encouraging businesses to file quickly because we are approaching the window for April tariffs,” she said.  

The importer of record must be the one to file for the refund; they will need to upload a CSV spreadsheet with a list of entry numbers separated by commas.

Upon uploading the spreadsheet, they will receive an acceptance or rejection notice, such as “no IEEPA duties were collected,” immediately.

Refunds are expected to be issued within 60 to 90 days.

If a company used a shipping firm as the importer of record, then the shipping firm must be the one to file, Yood said.

The two major U.S. shippers, UPS and FedEx, have announced publicly that they will be filing for tariff refunds, then passing the money along to their clients.

Phase II of the process will involve refunding IEEPA tariffs paid on entries that were liquidated more than 80 days ago, as well as entries that are under review due to protests filed by the importer.

Yood said CBP has not yet announced the date on which Phase II of the refund process will begin.

A replay of JVC’s tariff refund webinar is available on the members-only section of the organization’s website.