The government says a trade judge exceeded his authority by extending tariff refunds to businesses that never filed suit.

By Milosh Potikj | USA Herald

Inside This Report

• U.S. Customs and Border Protection has processed and certified $100 billion in tariff refunds.
• The government wants refunds on finalized entries limited to importers that filed individual lawsuits.
• The dispute is proceeding in the Federal Circuit under V.O.S. Selections Inc. v. Trump.

The Trump administration is asking a federal appeals court to narrow an order requiring refunds of unlawfully collected emergency tariffs to all affected importers, including businesses that never sued. The challenge could determine which companies recover money from older customs entries that were already finalized.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection has processed and certified $100 billion in refunds. The government filed its opening brief Monday in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, where the consolidated dispute is proceeding as V.O.S. Selections Inc. v. Trump, case No. 26-1895.

Government Says the Refund Order Reaches Too Far

The refund fight follows the Supreme Court’s Feb. 20 ruling that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act did not authorize the president to impose tariffs. As USA Herald previously reported, that decision triggered a massive repayment process for duties collected on imports from nearly every U.S. trading partner.

Court of International Trade Judge Richard K. Eaton later directed CBP to make the refund process available to all importers of record, not only plaintiffs in the thousands of tariff lawsuits. The government argues that this nationwide relief conflicts with the Supreme Court’s 2025 decision in Trump v. CASA Inc., which restricted court orders extending relief beyond the parties before a judge.

Eaton has said those limits do not control the specialized trade court, which has nationwide jurisdiction over customs disputes. The government’s brief asks the Federal Circuit to reject that reasoning and limit relief to importers that preserved their claims through litigation.

Finalized Customs Entries Drive the Dispute

The practical issue involves import entries that completed the customs process before CBP could reverse the charges administratively. The government says federal customs law generally prevents the agency from reopening those finalized entries after the review period closes.

Importers can still file suit within the applicable limitations period, government lawyers said, noting that the trade court has already entered hundreds of case-specific refund orders. That approach may be costly for smaller companies that paid invalidated duties but did not begin litigation.

CBP previously estimated that the government collected about $166 billion from roughly 330,000 importers. The government has said the contested finalized entries represent 6.9% of that total, leaving billions of dollars tied to the appeal.

What Happens Next

The importers will have an opportunity to respond before the Federal Circuit decides if Eaton’s broad refund order can stand. Until then, CBP’s refund program continues, but access to money connected with older finalized entries remains the central unresolved question.