U.S. Trade Court Orders Trump: Give Your Victims Tariff Refunds

A US federal judge has cleared the way for thousands of businesses to receive refunds for tariffs that the Supreme Court (SC) struck down last month.

The ruling was specifically on a case brought by a filtration company in Tennessee, Atmus Filtration. (Photo: Atmus Filtration) 

The US Court of International Trade (CIT) on Wednesday ordered Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to issue refunds for levies US President Donald Trump introduced last year under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), Danielle Kaye reported for BBC News.

“All importers of record whose entries were subject to IEEPA duties are entitled to the benefit” from the high court’s ruling, Judge Richard Eaton wrote.

The payment process remains murky. But the trade court decision marks a setback for Trump, who has moved to replace the import taxes and bemoaned the prospect of refunds.

The ruling was specifically on a case brought by a filtration company in Tennessee, Atmus Filtration, but the judge said he will be the only one to hear cases about refunds.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the US was “likely” to implement a 15% global tariff this week, up from 10%, following conflicting statements from President Donald Trump about the new rate.

It is intended to replace the IEEPA tariffs struck down by the SC.

The Trump administration brought in an estimated $130 billion (£97 billion) from tariffs imposed on most goods imported into the US through IEEPA. Companies including the global transportation and postal firm FedEx have filed lawsuits seeking full refunds of the tariffs.