CBP Interim Final Rule ?Electronic Refunds Required After February 6, 2026
Source
American Shipper
Post Date
01/12/2026
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has announced changes to its refund process, transitioning to electronic refunds through the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) as part of the U.S. Treasury? effort to modernize payments and eliminate paper checks.
Important Update: CBP has now issued an Interim Final Rule establishing a new deadline for mandatory electronic refund enrollment. ?By February 6, 2026, eligible payees must be enrolled in ACE via their ACE Portal Account in order to receive refunds. Paper refund requests will not be accepted after this date. ?Payees who have not yet enrolled in ACE should do so as soon as possible to avoid delays in electronic refund processing. For full details on the Interim Final Rule, please see the Federal Register notice and CBP? national media release here.
What this means for you: ?All corporations and personal payees seeking CBP refunds must be enrolled in ACE by February 6, 2026 and must also complete their ACH Refund registration within the ACE portal. ?After this date, CBP refunds, including any ping refunds, will not be issued via paper check to importers not enrolled in ACE ACH Refund. ?Once enrolled, refunds will be issued electronically through Treasury? Automated Clearing House. ?This change is part of implementation of Executive Order 14247, Modernizing Payments To and From America? Bank Account. Additional information ?including enrollment instructions and FAQs ?is available on CBP? ACE webpages: ?CBP ACE Refund Enrollment & Guidance ?ACE Development & Deployment Schedule CBP will continue to provide s as additional guidance becomes available.
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