$166 billion in tariff refunds just became available, but small businesses may already be at a disadvantage

After months of waiting, U.S. importers will finally have access to the $166 billion collected from tariffs that were ruled unconstitutional. But as American small businesses battered by the import taxes look to recoup the cost of the levies, they may find it’s more difficult for them than it is for larger, wealthier firms.

On Monday, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) rolled out the first phase of its electronic tariff refund system, also known as the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE), allowing importers to apply for refunds on tariffs struck down by the Supreme Court.

The justices ruled in February that the duties imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) were illegal, but gave no recommendations on how to provide refunds for companies that paid for the brunt of the import taxes, leaving the process to the Court of International Trade and CBP.

Of more than 330,000 U.S. importers, about 56,497 have applied for refunds, according to recent filings from CBP. Claims from those import...