U.S. Customs and Border Protection says at least 45 days needed for tariff refunds

WASHINGTON — U.S. Customs and Border Protection will not be able to immediately begin issuing refunds for President Donald Trump’s tariffs that were struck down by the Supreme Court.

In a filing to court Friday, Brandon Lord, a senior official in U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s trade office, said the department hopes to have a refund system in place in 45 days.

A judge with the U.S. Court of International Trade on Wednesday ordered refunds for companies that paid Trump’s so-called “Liberation Day” tariffs and the fentanyl-related duties on Canada, Mexico and China.

That decision came after America’s top court last month concluded it was not legal for Trump to use the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, better known as IEEPA, for his sweeping and erratic tariff agenda.

The conservative-led Supreme Court found that the U.S. Constitution “very clearly” gives Congress power over taxes and tariffs.

That ruling did not say whether there should be refunds, leaving companies that paid the duties to sue the federal government.

Wednesday’s decision in the New York trade court came from a case brought by Atmus Filtration, a company in Tennessee, but Judge Richard Eaton’s decision said all importers who paid IEEPA duties are “entitled to the benefit” of the Supreme Court’s decision.

Lord said Customs and Border Protection is “not able to comply with the Court of International Trade’s order” but added that his department is working on a new system that will simplify the process for refunds.

Lord said that as of March 4, his department had counted 330,000 importers who made more than 53 million entries to pay the now-illegal tariffs. Lord said it amounts to about US$166 billion in refunds.

Under the current process, Lord said, it would take more than four million hours for employees to process the refunds. He added the agency is confident the new system could issue the refunds in a more timely manner.

Eaton would have to approve the process before it proceeds.

The White House has not yet responded to a request for comment about the trade court’s Wednesday decision. It’s not clear if the Trump administration will appeal the trade court’s order or take other action to slow down the process.

Some Canadian companies will be waiting on refunds but Canada was largely shielded from the IEEPA tariffs by a carveout under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement on trade, better known as CUSMA.

Trump declared an emergency at the northern border related to the flow of fentanyl last year in order to use IEEPA to hit Canada with 35 per cent tariffs. Those duties didn’t apply to goods compliant under CUSMA.

Trump replaced his IEEPA tariffs last week with a 10 per cent worldwide tariff using Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act. That duty can only increase to 15 per cent and it will expire after 150 days unless Congress votes to extend it.

That global tariff also does not apply to CUSMA-compliant goods.

None of the court decisions will affect Trump’s separate tariffs hammering Canadian industries, including steel, aluminum, automobiles, lumber and cabinets.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 6, 2026.

Kelly Geraldine Malone, The Canadian Press