CAPE Declarations in the ACE Portal: A Practical Guide for US Importers

CBP Publishes the Official CAPE Declaration Guide

In April 2026, US Customs and Border Protection released Publication No. 5537-0426 — a Quick Reference Guide titled ACE Portal: Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) Declarations. This is the definitive procedural document for anyone filing CAPE Declarations through the ACE Portal to claim IEEPA duty refunds.

The guide covers three critical areas: how to create and upload a CAPE Declaration, how to review declaration status details, and a complete reference of every error message you might encounter. For US importers and their licensed customs brokers, this is essential reading before submitting any CAPE filing.

We have made the original CBP document available as a free download in our resource library.

Who Can File a CAPE Declaration

The CAPE tab in the ACE Portal is available to three account types: Importer, Filer, and Organizational Broker accounts. The tab appears under the More drop-down menu in the account navigation bar. Within the CAPE tab, the File Uploads subtab is where you create and submit declarations, and the Claim Status subtab is where you monitor processing outcomes.

There is an important caveat for Filer accounts: only those with Filer Type set to Importer can actually submit CAPE Declarations. If your Filer Type is anything other than Importer, the CAPE tab will be visible but will display a message confirming that the functionality is not available for non-importer filers.

How the Upload Process Works

The filing process is straightforward but has strict formatting requirements that will reject your submission if not followed precisely:

1. Download the template. In the CAPE tab, click Upload, then download the CAPE Upload Template — a CSV file called ACEP_CapeEntryNumberUploadTemplate.
2. Enter your entry numbers. List entry numbers vertically in column A, starting in row 2 (below the "Entry Number" header). Do not delete the header row.
3. Save as CSV. The file must be saved as CSV (Comma delimited) (*.csv). Any other format will be rejected immediately.
4. Acknowledge the attestation. Before uploading, you must check the Acknowledge checkbox — a legal attestation under 18 U.S.C. §§ 1001, 542, 545 and 19 USC § 1592 and 31 U.S.C. § 3729(a) confirming that classifications, valuations and entry numbers are true and correct. This is not a formality. It carries criminal and civil liability.
5. Upload the file. Select Upload File or drag and drop. The portal processes the file and returns a status.

Hard Limits to Know

• Maximum 10,000 entry numbers per file
• Maximum file size: 1 MB
• If you have more than 10,000 entries, split them across multiple CSV uploads

Validation: Three Layers of Checks

CBP runs three sequential validation stages. Understanding where your filing can fail — and why — is critical for avoiding repeated rejections and wasted time.

Layer 1: File Format Validation

The first check is purely structural. Your file will be rejected outright if:

• It is not a CSV file
• It is empty or missing the "Entry Number" header row
• It exceeds 10,000 entries or 1 MB

The portal error will display the specific reason — "Not a CSV file", for example — in the upload dialog.

Layer 2: Entry Number Format Validation

If the file passes format checks, each entry number is validated individually. Entry numbers must be exactly 11 alphanumeric characters (dashes are stripped automatically). Duplicate entry numbers within the same file will fail. For Filer and Organizational Broker accounts, the first three characters of each entry number must match the Filer Code of the account.

Failures at this stage show as "Failed initial validation" in the File Upload Status column.

Layer 3: Batch Validation (Entry Summary Checks)

The most consequential validation layer. Even if your entry numbers are correctly formatted, they can still be rejected if:

• The IOR (Importer of Record) number does not match the IOR on the entry summary — "Account Mismatch"
• The entry number does not exist in ACE — "Entry Summary Not Found or Archived in ACE"
• The entry summary status is not "Accepted" — "Entry Summary is Cancelled/Rejected"
• The entry is on a drawback claim — "Entry on Drawback"
• The entry is flagged for reconciliation — "Entry Summary Flagged for Recon"
• The entry has an open or suspended protest — "Protest on Entry"
• The entry type is TIB (23), Duty Deferral (08), Recon (09) or Drawback (47) — "Entry Type Not Allowed"
• The entry is more than 80 days past its original liquidation date
• The entry does not have at least one IEEPA HTS line — "No IEEPA HTS on Entry"

Failures at this stage show as "Rejected by batch validation".

Monitoring Your Claim Status

Once a CAPE Declaration is accepted, it moves to the Claim Status subtab. Three outcomes are possible:

• Accepted — all entries passed validation. A claim number is assigned and processing begins.
• Accepted with Error(s) — at least one entry failed validation, but others succeeded. A claim number is issued for the valid entries. The claim details file shows which entries failed and why.
• Rejected — all entries failed validation. No claim number is issued.

The claim number hyperlink downloads a CSV file showing the status of every entry number in the upload. For entries that failed, the ERROR_DESCRIPTION column provides the specific reason — for example, "ENTRY SUMMARY IS CANCELLED/REJECTED" or "ENTRY SUMMARY IS IN TRADE CONTROL".

The 22 Error Messages You Need to Know

CBP's guide documents 22 distinct error messages across file validation, entry format validation and entry-level claim validation. The full table is in the downloadable PDF, but the errors that trip up the most importers are:

• Account Mismatch — the IOR on your account does not match the entry summary. This is the most common batch rejection and usually means the entry was filed under a different IOR number.
• Entry Summary is in Final Liquidation Status — the entry has been liquidated or reliquidated more than 80 days ago. Phase 1 cannot touch it.
• HTS Relationship/Sequence Mismatch — the HTS line items are out of sequence or the system cannot calculate duty from the HTS codes on the entry. This usually indicates a data quality issue in the original entry.
• Statement Processing Not Complete — the entry is on a statement authorized for payment, but CBP has not finished processing it. You need to wait and retry.
• Protest on Entry — entries with an open or suspended protest are excluded from CAPE Phase 1 entirely.

Why Data Quality Matters Before You File

The acknowledgment checkbox is not optional boilerplate. By checking it, you attest under penalty of law that the HTSUS classifications and valuations for every entry number in your file are true and correct. If CBP discovers classification errors, valuation issues, or underpaid duties on other lines within those entries during their compliance review, refunds can be offset.

This is why filing a CAPE Declaration without first auditing the underlying entry data is a material risk. An entry that looks like a straightforward IEEPA refund may carry compliance exposure on other commodity lines that reduces or eliminates the net recovery.

How MyCustomsInfo® Supports CAPE Readiness

MyCustomsInfo® provides US importers and their compliance teams with the entry-level audit intelligence needed to approach CAPE with confidence. Before any CAPE Declaration is submitted, the platform enables users to:

• Identify eligible entries — review liquidation status, entry type and IEEPA HTS exposure across your full portfolio
• Audit for compliance risk — flag classification errors, valuation discrepancies and other issues that could trigger CBP offsets during CAPE processing
• Clean your data before filing — ensure the entry numbers you submit will pass all three validation layers the first time
• Monitor claim outcomes — track which entries succeeded, which failed, and plan corrective action for the next filing cycle

The work that matters most happens before the CSV file is uploaded. MyCustomsInfo® exists to make that pre-filing audit faster, more reliable and fully documented.

Book a compliance review to assess your entry portfolio ahead of CAPE filing, or speak to our trade compliance team directly.

Download the Original CBP Guide

The full CBP Quick Reference Guide (Publication No. 5537-0426, April 2026) is available as a free download in our resource library. It includes step-by-step screenshots of the ACE Portal interface, the complete error message reference table, and the legal attestation text.