US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported on Tuesday that it is making steady progress in establishing a streamlined process to refund approximately US$166 billion in tariff collections. These collections were recently deemed illegal by the Supreme Court.
In a filing with the US Court of International Trade, Executive Official Brandon Lord stated that the development of the new refund claims portal and its associated review system is currently between 60 and 85 per cent complete. While a specific start date for applications has not been confirmed, the agency previously indicated a target deadline for late April.
Once the system is operational, the agency expects the review and processing of individual refund applications to take up to 45 days.
Phased implementation and priority entries
The new system is designed to accept claims in distinct phases. According to the declaration filing, first priority will be given to customs entries that were liquidated or finalised within the 80 days prior. Entries with a liquidation status that has been suspended, extended, or placed under review will also be prioritised.
Lord further explained that the initial phase will include declarations involving warehouse and warehouse withdrawal entries. Data provided in the filing shows that approximately 26,664 importers of record have already completed the necessary steps to receive electronic refunds.
These importers represent about 78 per cent of the entries for which duties were paid under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), accounting for a total of US$120 billion.
Background on Supreme Court ruling
Last month, the US Supreme Court struck down the broad global tariffs implemented by President Donald Trump under the IEEPA. The ruling represented a significant setback for a central economic policy of the administration.
Court documents indicate that more than 330,000 importers paid these tariffs on 53 million individual shipments. As the Supreme Court did not provide specific guidance on how to facilitate the refunds for payments collected since February 2025, the responsibility fell to the Court of International Trade in New York City.
Litigation and agency response
While major importers like FedEx initiated legal action against CBP to secure their refund rights, many smaller businesses expressed concern that the costs of litigation would exceed the actual reimbursement. Trump had previously suggested that the refund process could take as long as five years.
Although Judge Richard Eaton of the Court of International Trade recently ordered CBP to use its existing system for these payments, the agency opted to build a new process. This decision was made to allow importers to receive their money starting as soon as next month without the requirement of filing a lawsuit.
