US companies denied refunds on Trump’s illegal tariffs, FT reports

The US government has declined to refund tariffs the Supreme Court ​ruled illegal last month, the Financial Times ‌reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The customs officials are denying companies' requests to recover duties ​imposed under emergency powers invoked by US ​President Donald Trump, leaving businesses uncertain and ⁠driving more disputes into court, the FT said.

The ​US government collected more than US$130 billion in illegal ​tariff payments, which were central to Trump's trade policy. The Supreme Court did not provide guidance for issuing refunds, ​creating confusion over how importers would be reimbursed.

On ​Wednesday, a US trade court judge ordered the government to begin ‌paying ⁠potentially billions of dollars in refunds to importers who paid tariffs.

Many companies have rushed to submit Post Summary Corrections to remove International Emergency Economic ​Powers Act ​tariff codes ⁠from shipment entries and seek refunds, but US Customs and Border Protection has ​been rejecting those submissions and suspending ​protests ⁠filed over repayments of IEEPA tariffs that had already been liquidated, the FT said.

Reuters