The United States has launched a tariff refund program following court rulings that certain Trump-era tariffs were unlawful. As a result, billions of dollars in duties are being reimbursed through a formal claims process administered by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
Who Can Apply and Where
Refund claims must be submitted through the U.S. Customs system via the CAPE portal within the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE).
Only the importer of record that directly paid the tariff at the U.S. border is eligible to apply.
Eligible applicants include:
- U.S. importers that paid the tariffs
- Customs brokers acting on behalf of the importer
Implications for Canadian Companies
Canadian companies are generally not eligible to apply directly unless they were the importer of record.
A Canadian business may benefit if:
- It acted as the importer of record into the U.S. (for example, through a U.S. entity or subsidiary), or
- It has a commercial agreement where a U.S. importer passes through the refund
However:
- Canadian exporters without importer of record status cannot apply directly
- Consumers and downstream businesses are not eligible
Canadian Coffee Sector Considerations
Eligibility within the Canadian coffee sector is limited and case specific:
- Companies, or their U.S. affiliates, that imported coffee into the U.S. and paid tariffs directly may be eligible
- Where a U.S. distributor acted as importer of record, that entity must file the claim, not the Canadian exporter
