The Supreme Court recently ruled in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump that the President did not have authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”) to enact sweeping tariffs on nearly all global imports. This includes some tariffs covering imports from Mexico, Canada, and China, in addition to many of the sweeping “reciprocal” tariffs announced early last year. The Court’s majority opinion, however, was silent about if and how refunds of these wrongly levied tariffs would be processed. Unfortunately, every passing day may mean that more of these illegal tariffs may never be returned to the importers who paid them.
Tariffs are generally paid by importers who report contents and value of shipments to Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”). These filings are subject to inspection or revision for generally one year from the time the items entered the country. After that time, the filing is deemed “liquidated.” Once liquidated, an importer only has 180 days to protest the liquidated rates to secure a refund. It is important to note that the one-year rule is when an entry is deemed liquidated; however, liquidation can happen earlier in the process, be conducted expeditiously when requested by the importer, or when CBP liquidates on its automatic cycle (usually 314 days after entry).
The idea of liquidation is to bring finality to customs and duties so that importers are not left worrying about an old claim being reviewed and additional tax being owed. The problem is that the reverse is also true. Even though the tariffs have now been struck down, there is not an automatic refund of liquidated or unliquidated claims. After the 180-day period to protest a liquidated claim has passed, it may be legally impossible to get a refund of the tariffs already paid.
The time to act is now. Every day that passes may make it harder to act before CBP liquidates the entries. If the entry has already been liquidated, then there is only 180 days for importers to take action to protest the liquidation to try and get either CBP or the Court to reliquidate the entry. It may be necessary to file suit in the Court of International Trade to preserve your rights to a refund. Billions of dollars of illegally assessed and paid tariffs are on the line. Contact our team today at (410) 497-5947 or schedule a confidential consultation.
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The Supreme Court recently ruled in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump that the President did not have authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”) to enact sweeping tariffs on nearly all global imports. This includes some tariffs covering imports from Mexico, Canada, and China, in addition to many of the sweeping “reciprocal” tariffs announced early last year. The Court’s majority opinion, however, was silent about if and how refunds of these wrongly levied tariffs would be processed. Unfortunately, every passing day may mean that more of these illegal tariffs may never be returned to the importers who paid them.
Tariffs are generally paid by importers who report contents and value of shipments to Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”). These filings are subject to inspection or revision for generally one year from the time the items entered the country. After that time, the filing is deemed “liquidated.” Once liquidated, an importer only has 180 days to protest the liquidated rates to secure a refund. It is important to note that the one-year rule is when an entry is deemed liquidated; however, liquidation can happen earlier in the process, be conducted expeditiously when requested by the importer, or when CBP liquidates on its automatic cycle (usually 314 days after entry).
The idea of liquidation is to bring finality to customs and duties so that importers are not left worrying about an old claim being reviewed and additional tax being owed. The problem is that the reverse is also true. Even though the tariffs have now been struck down, there is not an automatic refund of liquidated or unliquidated claims. After the 180-day period to protest a liquidated claim has passed, it may be legally impossible to get a refund of the tariffs already paid.
The time to act is now. Every day that passes may make it harder to act before CBP liquidates the entries. If the entry has already been liquidated, then there is only 180 days for importers to take action to protest the liquidation to try and get either CBP or the Court to reliquidate the entry. It may be necessary to file suit in the Court of International Trade to preserve your rights to a refund. Billions of dollars of illegally assessed and paid tariffs are on the line. Contact our team today at (410) 497-5947 or schedule a confidential consultation.
