Title: Trump Administration Seeks to Halt Tariff Refund Process via Legal Appeal After Distributing Over $20 Billion

Less than eight weeks after launching its digital platform for tariff reimbursements, the Trump administration is attempting to freeze the distribution mechanism. On Friday, the administration announced its intention to appeal a federal court ruling that expanded eligibility, granting all U.S. importers the right to claim refunds rather than limiting them to those who had previously filed lawsuits against the government.

The legal battle stems from a February Supreme Court decision that invalidated tariffs enacted by President Donald Trump under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), determining that such actions exceeded presidential authority. In response, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) introduced the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) system in April. This online portal was designed to allow importers to apply for portions of the $166 billion in potential refunds.

According to a CBP court submission dated May 26, the CAPE system has processed $85 billion in potential and certified refunds. As of May 22, $20.6 billion had already been transferred to the U.S. Treasury for disbursement. However, the filing did not specify the number of entities receiving these payments.

In its legal arguments, the Department of Justice (DOJ) contended that Judge Richard K. Eaton overstepped his jurisdiction by mandating universal refunds. The DOJ asserted that the government is prohibited from issuing refunds to importers who have already completed the "liquidation" process—where CBP finalizes the amount owed to an entity—unless the applicant specifically sued to recover funds paid under illegal tariffs.

“CBP has no authority to reliquidate or refund money without a court order,” the Justice Department stated in its filing.

Additionally, the DOJ opposed Judge Eaton’s directive requiring CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott to testify before the U.S. Court of International Trade regarding the timeline for repaying approximately 330,000 importers potentially eligible for refunds. Judge Eaton rejected the DOJ’s objection, arguing that Scott’s testimony was necessary to assess whether the Trump administration intended to fully reimburse all revenue collected from the IEEPA tariffs.

President Trump has indicated strong resistance to the Supreme Court’s ruling, suggesting shortly after the decision that litigating the refunds would take years. Meanwhile, the White House has introduced new tariffs under Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act, targeting countries accused of unfair or discriminatory trade practices, as well as temporary restrictions under Section 122. The U.S. Court of International Trade recently ruled that the Section 122 tariffs were illegal, and the United States Trade Representative is currently reviewing the legality of the Section 301 measures.

Source: Yahoo News Generated at: 2026-06-02 10:41:29 UTC