US opens tariff refunds portal after court struck down Trump duties

WASHINGTON: The US government on Monday launched a tool for refunding more than $166 billion in revenue from tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump and subsequently struck down by the Supreme Court. 

The conservative-majority high court in February ruled against a swath of Trump’s tariffs, marking a stinging rebuke of his key economic policy and opening the door to refunds.

On Monday, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said it has activated the first phase of its processing tool, meaning that importers and customs brokers can start submitting documentation to recover their payments.

READ MORE: US tariff rate to hit 15% or more for some nations, USTR says

The agency estimated in March that more than 330,000 importers could be eligible for refunds on duties or deposits paid on over 53 million shipments.

In the new system’s initial deployment, around $127 billion in duty payments are eligible for electronic refunds, the agency said.

The Supreme Court ruling applies to duties imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, which Trump used to target virtually all US trading partners with varying tariff rates since returning to the presidency in January last year.

But his sector-specific tariffs on goods like steel, aluminum and autos remain intact.

Thousands of companies have filed lawsuits with the Court of International Trade since the high court’s ruling, to seek refunds.

The extent to which consumers who have borne the brunt of tariffs will be repaid depends on whether companies share the recovered funds, however.

For now, FedEx for example said it plans to issue refunds for tariffs paid to “shippers and consumers who originally bore those charges.”

Valid refunds will generally be issued within 60 to 90 days after applications are approved, the agency added in a recent notice.