The Supreme Court’s ruling in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump invalidated all IEEPA tariffs collected between February 4, 2025, and February 24, 2026. That covers roughly 13 months of imports from dozens of countries, affecting an estimated 330,000+ importers. But “all IEEPA tariffs are refundable” doesn’t mean every importer automatically qualifies, and it definitely doesn’t mean every dollar you paid in duties is coming back.
Eligibility is determined at the entry level — not at the company level. You might have 500 entries where 400 qualify and 100 don’t. Or you might have entries where only a portion of the duties assessed are IEEPA-related. Understanding exactly what qualifies, what doesn’t, and what determines your recovery rights on each entry is the first thing you need to sort out before you spend any time on filing steps or recovery path selection.
The Importer of Record Requirement
The most fundamental eligibility requirement is that you must be the importer of record (IOR) on the entries you’re claiming. Only the IOR — the party legally responsible for the import transaction — has standing to file a refund claim, submit a protest, or assign the claim to a third party.
Who is the importer of record?
The IOR is the entity listed on the entry summary (CBP Form 7501) as the party responsible for paying duties. In most cases, this is the company that purchased the goods and arranged for their import into the United States. Your IOR number is typically your EIN (Employer Identification Number).
When this gets complicated
Several common business arrangements can create confusion about IOR status:
Third-party logistics (3PL) providers. If your 3PL imports goods under their own IOR number — which some do for operational efficiency — the refund rights belong to them, not to you. You’ll need a written assignment of those rights or a new agreement to redirect refunds.
Customs brokers as IOR. In rare cases, a customs broker may have filed entries under their own IOR number. This is unusual but does happen, particularly with smaller importers who don’t have their own ACE portal accounts.
Corporate restructuring. If your company changed its EIN during the IEEPA period — through a merger, acquisition, or reorganization — entries filed under the old EIN require documentation linking the old entity to the new one. CBP won’t automatically match them.
Multiple subsidiaries. Large enterprises that import through multiple subsidiary entities may have IEEPA entries scattered across several IOR numbers. Each IOR files separately.
No minimum threshold
There is no minimum duty amount to qualify for a refund. If you paid $500 in IEEPA duties on a single entry, that $500 is refundable. That said, the practical cost of filing (your time, your broker’s fees, advisory support) means very small claims may not justify the effort. For most importers, the question isn’t whether they qualify — it’s whether the amount justifies the process.
As a general guideline, importers with under $10,000 in total IEEPA exposure can likely handle the process through their existing customs broker relationship. Importers with $10,000 to $250,000 benefit from structured support. And importers above $250,000 should treat this as a significant financial recovery project with dedicated attention.
Which HTS Codes Qualify
IEEPA tariffs were assessed under specific HTS (Harmonized Tariff Schedule) headings. These codes are the primary filter for identifying eligible entries in your ACE data.
The qualifying headings
| HTS Heading | Applies To | Rate Range |
|---|---|---|
| 9903.01.xx | Goods originating from China | 20% - 145% (varied by executive order) |
| 9903.02.xx | Goods originating from other countries (Canada, Mexico, EU, etc.) | 10% - 25% (varied by country and executive order) |
Any entry line containing one of these HTS headings represents an IEEPA duty assessment that the Supreme Court ruling has now invalidated.
Rate variations within the IEEPA period
The IEEPA tariff rates changed multiple times during the 13-month period as the administration issued successive executive orders. For China-origin goods, rates escalated from an initial 10% to as high as 145% before being partially reduced. For other countries, rates ranged from 10% to 25%. The specific rate that applies to each of your entries depends on the entry date and the country of origin.
This matters for your refund calculation — an entry filed during a 145% rate period has a dramatically larger refund than one filed during a 10% period, even if the underlying goods are identical.
What doesn’t qualify
This is where many importers make costly mistakes. The following duty programs were not struck down by the Supreme Court and are not eligible for IEEPA refunds:
| Program | HTS Heading | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Section 301 (China trade war) | 9903.88.xx | Still in effect — not affected by IEEPA ruling |
| Section 232 (steel/aluminum) | 9903.80.xx | Still in effect — separate legal authority |
| Standard MFN duties | Varies by product | Remain as assessed |
| Antidumping duties (AD) | Varies by product/country | Separate proceedings |
| Countervailing duties (CVD) | Varies by product/country | Separate proceedings |
A single entry can include IEEPA duties and Section 301 duties and standard MFN duties. Only the IEEPA portion is refundable. If your entry summary shows $50,000 in total duties but only $20,000 of that is attributable to 9903.01 or 9903.02 codes, your refund is $20,000 plus interest — not $50,000.
This separation is one of the most common mistakes importers make when estimating their exposure. Commingling IEEPA and non-IEEPA duties in a claim will trigger CBP review and delay processing.
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The Date Range: February 4, 2025 — February 24, 2026
Eligibility is bounded by two dates: the effective date of the first IEEPA tariff executive order and the date CBP suspended IEEPA assessments following the Supreme Court ruling.
Start date: February 4, 2025
This is when Executive Order 14257 took effect, imposing the first IEEPA tariffs on imports from China. Any entry with an entry date on or after February 4, 2025, that was assessed duties under HTS 9903.01 or 9903.02 is within scope.
End date: February 24, 2026
Four days after the Supreme Court’s February 20, 2026, ruling, CBP issued guidance suspending the assessment of IEEPA tariffs on new entries. Entries filed after February 24, 2026, should not have IEEPA duties assessed. If any do (due to processing delays or system lag), those would also be refundable, but they represent an edge case.
Entries filed before February 4, 2025
In some cases, entries filed before the IEEPA tariffs took effect were later assessed IEEPA duties — for example, if the goods were in transit or in a foreign trade zone when the executive order took effect. These entries may qualify, but they require individual analysis.
Entries in bonded warehouses or FTZs
Goods held in bonded warehouses or Foreign Trade Zones that were withdrawn for consumption during the IEEPA period may have been assessed IEEPA duties at the time of withdrawal, even if they originally entered the U.S. before February 4, 2025. The relevant date for eligibility purposes is the date of withdrawal for consumption, not the original arrival date.
Entry Status: The Critical Eligibility Variable
The article's decision tree starts with importer identity and code match, but the last decision point determines not just eligibility. It decides the actual recovery mechanism available to you.
Here’s where eligibility gets nuanced. Every entry has a lifecycle, and where your entry sits in that lifecycle determines not just whether you can get a refund, but how you get it.
The three statuses
Unliquidated. The entry has been filed and duties have been paid, but CBP has not yet finalized the duty assessment. These entries are eligible for the simplest recovery path: a Post-Summary Correction (PSC) filed through your customs broker. No protest, no litigation — just a correction to remove the IEEPA codes.
Liquidated (within 180-day protest window). CBP has finalized the duty assessment, but the 180-day protest window under 19 U.S.C. Section 1514 has not yet expired. These entries are eligible for recovery through a formal CBP protest. Filing the protest preserves your rights under the CIT’s March 4 universal refund order.
Finally liquidated (past 180-day window). The entry was liquidated more than 180 days ago, no protest was filed, and the entry is now considered final and conclusive. These entries are still potentially recoverable through CIT litigation under 28 U.S.C. Section 1581(i), but the process is more complex, more expensive, and less certain.
The eligibility decision tree
Use this table to determine the recovery path for each entry:
| Question | Yes | No |
|---|---|---|
| Are you the importer of record? | Continue ↓ | Need IOR assignment |
| Does the entry contain 9903.01 or 9903.02 codes? | Continue ↓ | Not an IEEPA entry |
| Entry date between Feb 4, 2025 and Feb 24, 2026? | Continue ↓ | Requires individual analysis |
| Is the entry still unliquidated? | → File PSC | Continue ↓ |
| Was the entry liquidated within the last 180 days? | → File protest | Continue ↓ |
| Is the entry finally liquidated? | → CIT litigation or claim assignment | — |
Why entry status matters for timing
Entries don’t stay in one status forever. An unliquidated entry today will be liquidated in weeks or months. A liquidated entry today will be finally liquidated in 180 days. The cost of waiting is not abstract — it’s the literal migration of your entries from easier recovery paths to harder ones.
Every week you delay data analysis, some of your entries move from “PSC-eligible” to “protest-required,” and some move from “protest-eligible” to “CIT-litigation-only.” That migration is irreversible.
Special Eligibility Scenarios
Most importers fall into straightforward categories. But several scenarios require additional analysis.
Drawback claims
If you’ve already filed a drawback claim on goods that also had IEEPA duties, the interaction between the drawback and the IEEPA refund needs careful analysis. You can’t recover the same duty twice. If drawback was calculated on total duties including IEEPA amounts, the drawback claim may need to be adjusted after the IEEPA refund is processed.
Reconciliation entries
Entries filed under CBP’s reconciliation program may have IEEPA duties that were assessed at the time of reconciliation rather than at the time of the original entry. The eligibility analysis for reconciliation entries focuses on the reconciliation date, not the original entry date.
Prior disclosure entries
If you made a prior disclosure to CBP related to entries that also had IEEPA duties, the IEEPA portion is still refundable. The prior disclosure relates to the underlying customs violation, not to the constitutionality of the IEEPA tariff itself.
Entries under appeal or litigation
If you were already contesting entries at the CIT for reasons unrelated to IEEPA (misclassification, valuation disputes), the IEEPA component can potentially be added to the existing case. Consult your trade counsel on the most efficient approach.
Goods from countries with layered tariffs
China-origin goods are the most complex because they may be subject to IEEPA tariffs (9903.01), Section 301 tariffs (9903.88), and standard MFN duties — all on the same entry line. Only the IEEPA portion is refundable. The China-specific tariff refund guide provides detailed analysis for this scenario.
How to Confirm Your Eligibility
The fastest way to confirm eligibility across your entire entry portfolio is a structured data analysis. Here’s the practical approach:
Step 1: Pull your ES-003 Entry Summary report from ACE covering the full IEEPA period (February 4, 2025, through February 24, 2026).
Step 2: Filter for entries containing HTS codes 9903.01 and 9903.02.
Step 3: For each qualifying entry, determine the liquidation status and calculate the 180-day protest deadline if applicable.
Step 4: Sum the IEEPA duty amounts — this is your estimated refund exposure before interest.
Step 5: Map each entry to its optimal recovery path based on status.
If this sounds like a lot of work — it is, especially for importers with hundreds or thousands of entry lines. That’s exactly what an Impact Assessment automates: entry-level eligibility analysis, deadline mapping, exposure calculation, and path recommendation, delivered in 5-10 business days at no cost.
Industry-Specific Eligibility Considerations
Different industries face different eligibility profiles based on their import patterns, sourcing countries, and the specific IEEPA rate schedules that applied to their goods.
Retail and consumer goods
Retailers who source finished products from China faced the highest IEEPA rates — up to 145% during peak escalation periods. These importers typically have straightforward eligibility because their entries are clearly classified under consumer goods HTS codes with obvious 9903.01 surcharges. The challenge is volume: a major retailer may have tens of thousands of IEEPA entry lines across multiple product categories, multiple ports of entry, and multiple customs brokers.
Manufacturing and industrial importers
Manufacturers importing components, raw materials, and intermediate goods from IEEPA-affected countries often have more complex eligibility profiles. A single production run may involve components from China (9903.01), sub-assemblies from Mexico (9903.02), and raw materials from Canada (9903.02) — each with different IEEPA rates and different liquidation timelines. The eligibility analysis must be done at the component level, not the finished product level.
Automotive and aerospace
These sectors frequently use bonded warehouses and Foreign Trade Zones, which creates the withdrawal-date eligibility question discussed earlier. They also tend to have long supply chains with multiple tiers of importers. Eligibility may depend on whether the Tier 1 supplier or the OEM is the importer of record on each entry.
Agriculture and food products
Agricultural importers from Mexico and Canada were subject to IEEPA tariffs under 9903.02, though rates were generally lower than China-origin goods. Eligibility is typically straightforward, but the perishable nature of the goods means these importers often have high entry volumes with relatively lower per-entry duty amounts. The aggregate exposure can still be substantial.
E-commerce and direct-to-consumer
Smaller importers who ship direct-to-consumer through e-commerce channels may have entries filed by freight forwarders or fulfillment partners under those partners’ IOR numbers. Confirming IOR status is the critical first step for these importers — without it, there’s no eligibility regardless of the duty amounts involved.
The Timeline Is Not on Your Side
Eligibility doesn’t last forever. The protest window is closing on the earliest liquidated entries. The CAPE system will launch and early filers will have the best queue position. Every week of delay narrows your options. The IEEPA tariff refund timeline shows exactly where we are in the process and what’s coming next.
Understanding your eligibility is not an academic exercise — it’s a time-sensitive financial decision. The importers who confirm eligibility now have the widest range of recovery options. The importers who wait will find those options narrowing with each passing week as protest deadlines expire and CAPE queue positions fill.
If you know you imported goods from IEEPA-affected countries during the qualifying period, you almost certainly have eligible entries. The question is how many, how much, and how urgent — and the only way to answer those questions is with data.
