The United States Court of International Trade in Manhattan has ordered the government to start paying refunds to importers who paid tariffs that the Supreme Court deemed were collected illegally.
US Customs and Border Protection disclosed in a court filing that it had collected about USD166 billion in International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) tariffs since last year, involving over 330,000 importers making over 53 million entries.
The agency told the US Court of International Trade that it could not currently comply with the order to begin refunding the tariffs. The earliest it could start issuing refunds would be late April, after revamping its existing technology, CNBC reported.
In a statement sent to ch-aviation, UPS Airlines said that the Supreme Court’s decision on the IEEPA tariffs “did not specifically address or include a framework for refunds” for it to arrange refund procedures or offer details about their timing or eligibility criteria.
However, it “will support our customers in obtaining IEEPA tariffs refunds due from the US government after a refund process is established by the authorities.”
While not immediately available for comment, FedEx has stated on its website that it will communicate with its clients any relevant information and updates, adding that if refunds are issued to the integrator, it will issue them to the shippers and consumers who originally paid those charges.
“When that will happen and the exact process for requesting and issuing refunds will depend in part on future guidance from the government and the court,” it added.
FedEx has sued the US government for a "full refund" of the money it paid for the tariffs unilaterally imposed by President Donald Trump's administration in 2025.
In parallel, Lufthansa has said it will reclaim US tariffs on imports that it has already paid, if the opportunity arises, chief financial officer Till Streichert said, as reported by Reuters.
