Importers with outstanding refunds for duties imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) may need to file an action with the US Court of International Trade (CIT) to recover amounts that were not refunded through the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE), according to a press release from The Vision Council (TVC). More than 4,000 IEEPA cases are already pending before the New York City-based court.

Judge Eaton, who is presiding over the cases, has entered orders directing US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to refund IEEPA duties paid by each plaintiff-importer that were not returned through CAPE 1. According to the release, those importers are expected to be able to use a new iteration of CAPE that is currently being developed by CBP to process the remaining entries.

For optical businesses that import eyewear, frames, or other products and have unrecovered IEEPA duties following CAPE 1, TVC noted that recovering those funds will require filing a case with the CIT and proceeding through the court process. The Vision Council advises filing before February 1, 2027, when the statute of limitations will begin to expire. The refund process is expected to take several months because timing is dependent, in part, on how quickly CBP can process new claims.

Participation in a class action could provide another option. At least 2 cases have sought class certification, although Judge Eaton has not yet ruled on those motions. According to TVC, it remains unclear how much of an outstanding refund an importer could recover through a class action compared with filing an individual lawsuit.

Importers are advised to identify any IEEPA duties that remain unrecovered after CAPE 1 and determine whether a CIT filing is necessary to preserve their refund rights before the limitations period begins to expire.