World Business Report US businesses begin claiming tariff refunds
Apr 20, 2026
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Small Business Locked Out During Refund Rollout
- Busy Baby founder Beth Benneke is owed $50,000 but was locked out of the customs portal so she couldn't submit a refund claim.
- She waited on hold nearly four hours, filed multiple support tickets and emailed addresses with no resolution, illustrating early portal access failures.
Tariffs Forced Startups Into Fundraising And Extra Costs
- Wild Rye founder Cassie Abel submitted roughly $250,000 in refund claims and faced confusion across multiple government portals but managed to have submissions accepted via the ACE portal.
- She reported an additional half a million dollars in indirect costs like expedited shipping, diverted staffing and fundraising to manage tariff impacts.
Scale And Key Requirements Shape The Refund Process
- The Liberty Justice Centre expects a massive surge of claims: phase one covers ~65% of volume, part of a $166bn total repayment pool.
- CBP requires importers to identify their importer-of-record and set up ACH via ACE or they'll miss automatic deposits.