Federal authorities are in the process of returning over $35.5 billion to importers following a Supreme Court decision that ruled the president's use of tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act unlawful, according to court filings made public Tuesday.
Officials said the refunds - which include interest on duties previously paid - are being routed through a government-operated online portal. Brandon Lord, executive director of trade programs in Customs and Border Protection's Office of Trade, provided details about how the claims are being handled and tracked.
The electronic tool, set up to manage claims tied to roughly $166 billion in duties that were overturned, had validated nearly 87,000 declarations as of Monday. Those validated declarations are eligible for the Treasury Department to issue payments, the filing said.
Since the launch of the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries, or CAPE, on April 20, about 126,000 declarations have been submitted through the system, Lord noted in the filing.
The refund effort traces back to the Supreme Court's Feb. 20 decision, in which a 6-3 majority held that the use of IEEPA to impose the disputed tariffs was unlawful. The high court's ruling did not establish procedures for refunds, leaving follow-up matters to lower courts and the implementing agencies.
Customs officials reported that more than 8.3 million accepted import entries have been reprocessed to strip out duties imposed under IEEPA. The filing also flagged that 1,880 consolidated refunds have not been forwarded to the Treasury because importers did not supply bank account information required to complete payments.
CBP had already indicated in earlier filings that the initial phase of the refund program cannot accept claims for more than roughly one third of the import entries implicated by the court's decision. The remaining entries involve more complex circumstances and Customs officials have not provided a timetable for when subsequent phases will open or be completed.
Some importers began receiving payments for early refund requests in the period described as early last week, a development that occurred sooner than some had expected.
Key points
- Over $35.5 billion in tariff refunds are being processed through a government portal, including interest on duties paid.
- Nearly 87,000 validated declarations allow Treasury to issue payments; about 126,000 declarations received since CAPE launched April 20.
- More than 8.3 million import entries have been reprocessed to remove IEEPA duties; some refunds are delayed due to missing bank account information.
Context for markets and sectors
- Importers and parties in international trade stand to see direct cash flow effects as refunds are issued.
- Treasury payment operations and Customs and Border Protection administration are central to executing the refund program.
- Banking/payment processing is implicated where refunds cannot proceed without account details.
Risks and uncertainties
- Officials have not provided a schedule for subsequent phases of the refund program, leaving timing for the majority of affected entries uncertain.
- Some consolidated refunds remain undelivered because importers have not supplied bank account information, blocking Treasury disbursements.
- The initial phase does not cover more than roughly one third of implicated entries; remaining cases are described as more complicated and lack a set timeline for resolution.