WASHINGTON — The U.S. government has certified and transmitted about $100 billion in tariff refunds to the Treasury Department for payment to importers, marking a major milestone in an unprecedented effort to return duties collected under tariffs the Supreme Court struck down earlier this year.
The total represents roughly 60% of the approximately $166 billion collected under tariffs imposed through the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, according to an update filed Tuesday in the U.S. Court of International Trade.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has approved nearly $129 billion in potential and certified refunds. As of July 31, the agency had received 252,496 refund declarations covering about 25.1 million import entries, according to the filing.
The scale of the payments makes the refund program a significant cash-flow event for retailers, manufacturers and other businesses that import goods into the United States. But the process is not complete, and the amount approved by Customs is larger than the amount transmitted to Treasury for disbursement.
Missing bank details are delaying some payments
Nearly 20,000 approved refunds worth about $1.6 billion have not been sent to Treasury because the importer or its authorized representative has not provided the required electronic banking information, the filing said.
That gap is an immediate operational issue for companies that expected a payment but have not received one. Importers must use the government’s electronic system and maintain valid Automated Clearing House information for the Treasury Department to issue the money.
Customs created the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries system, known as CAPE, to manage the volume of claims. The platform groups eligible import entries and supports the electronic processing of refunds that would otherwise require extensive individual review. The agency has also sought public comment on the information required for court-ordered IEEPA refunds.
Customs officials have said the agency must still verify that entries are eligible and determine whether an importer owes other duties, taxes or fees before a refund can be completed. Interest calculations can also add complexity to the process.
A court-ordered refund operation
The Supreme Court ruled in February that IEEPA did not authorize the president to impose the challenged tariffs. In March, Judge Richard Eaton of the U.S. Court of International Trade ordered the government to begin refunding eligible duties, with interest, to importers of record.
The court’s order followed months of uncertainty over whether companies would have to file individual lawsuits to recover the money. Litigation continues over some categories of import entries, including entries whose liquidation became final before the broader refund process was established.
The latest figures show that payments have accelerated sharply. Customs reported in May that it had finalized about $35.5 billion in refunds. By the end of July, approximately $100 billion had been certified and sent to Treasury for disbursement.
The latest court update does not mean every importer has received all the money it may be owed. Claims remain under review, some payments are waiting for bank information, and disputes over finally liquidated entries are still moving through the courts.
What the refunds mean for commerce
For import-dependent businesses, the payments can restore working capital that was tied up in duties, interest and higher landed costs. The timing could affect inventory purchases, supplier payments and margin planning heading into the holiday season.
The refunds are paid to the importer of record. They do not automatically flow to consumers who may have paid higher retail prices after businesses passed along part of the tariff cost. Whether companies adjust pricing or return money to customers will depend on their contracts, accounting treatment and individual business decisions.
The Trump administration has since pursued new tariffs under different trade authorities, and those actions are facing separate legal challenges. That leaves importers managing both a large refund process tied to earlier duties and continued uncertainty over the cost of future shipments.
For now, the latest filing confirms that the refund operation has moved from planning to large-scale payment. The remaining work will determine how quickly the other roughly $66 billion collected under the invalidated tariffs reaches eligible businesses.