

March 6 (UPI) -- U.S. Customs and Border Protection told a judge Friday that it can't comply with his order to begin refunding tariffs that the Supreme Court ruled illegal
- On Wednesday, the Court of International Trade ordered the department to begin reimbursing the importers who paid the tariffs created by President Donal Trump under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, Axios reported.
- The Supreme Court determined Fe. 21 that he didn't have the power to do so under that law.
- On Friday, Customs and Border Protection's Brandon Lord, executive director of Trade Programs at the agency, told the court in a filing that it's now facing "an unprecedented volume of refunds."
- Scope: The order applies to all importers of record who paid IEEPA-based duties, not just those involved in specific lawsuits.
- Invalidation: The Supreme Court ruled in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump that the president cannot unilaterally impose these tariffs, as the power to levy taxes belongs to Congress.
- Amount: Estimated refunds could total up to $166 billion, with the CBP indicating an "unprecedented volume" of over 53 million entries to process.
- Implementation Delay: CBP announced it cannot immediately comply with the order due to technical limitations and expects to need 45 days to begin issuing refunds.
- Appeals: The Trump administration is expected to appeal the decision, creating potential further delays.
The move follows a March 4 order by a judge on the federal trade court in New York to stop calculating President Donald Trump’s emergency tariffs on importers’ customs paperwork.
Companies Push for Billions in Refunds After Tariff Reversal
Immediately after the Supreme Court announced its decision in the tariff case, Trump made comments suggesting the government might oppose paying refunds.
“I guess it has to get litigated,” the president said at the time. He also speculated that the issue might take years to resolve.
“Hopefully the Justice Department attorneys will work with us and it will be an easy process,” he said.
Spokespeople for the Justice Department and the White House didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
- The small businesses that brought one of the cases that went before the justices didn’t specify how much money they’re seeking to recoup.
- Their lawyers told the trade court on Feb. 24 that any refund process adopted in the case could serve as a “template for providing swift relief” for the rest of the companies pursuing claims.



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