As the U.S. Supreme Court on the 20th (local time) ruled that the Donald Trump administration's reciprocal tariff based on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) was unlawful, attention is focusing on whether corporations can get back tariffs they already paid.
Reuters, citing economists at the University of Pennsylvania's "Penn-Wharton Budget Model" (PWBW), projected that refund claims stemming from the Supreme Court's ruling against the reciprocal tariff would reach $175 billion (about 253.7 trillion won).
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) collected $133.5 billion (about 193.5 trillion won) in revenue from the imposition of the reciprocal tariff through mid-December last year. With the Supreme Court ruling, this tax revenue has also lost its legal basis.
A multitude of corporations have already filed lawsuits seeking tariff refunds in anticipation of the Supreme Court's unlawful ruling. A wide range of corporations, including Costco Wholesale, eyewear maker EssilorLuxottica, tire company "Goodyear Tire & Rubber," Reebok, and Puma, are reportedly pursuing litigation. Bloomberg News estimated more than 1,000 entities, while The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) estimated several hundred have filed suits.
Subsidiaries of foreign corporations, including Korea's Taihan Cable & Solution and Hankook Tire & Technology, Japan's Kawasaki Heavy Industries, and China's solar company Longi Green Energy Technology, have also reportedly joined the lawsuits.
With the Supreme Court's ruling, existing litigation is expected to resume, and additional filings are likely. The U.S. Court of International Trade (USCIT) ordered on Dec. 23 last year that all new tariff refund cases be automatically stayed and not proceed further until the Supreme Court issued its decision.
President Trump said last month that if he lost at the Supreme Court, he would have to return "trillions of dollars," adding that "it will be a complete mess and it will be almost impossible for our country to pay." Jamieson Greer of the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) also said in a media interview last year that "if (the Supreme Court recognizes the illegality), certain plaintiffs (corporations) will receive tariff refunds," adding that as much as $200 billion would have to be returned.
However, significant confusion is expected in the process. The Supreme Court did not clearly address whether tariffs already collected would be refunded or how that would be handled.
In a dissenting opinion, Justice Kavanaugh noted, "There was no discussion as to whether the government must return billions of dollars, and if so, how," adding, "That process will be a mess."
At a White House press conference, President Trump also pointed out, "They took months to write the opinion, but they did not even discuss that point (whether to refund)." He added, "It will probably be litigated for the next two years," and later said, "We will be in court for the next five years."
Another variable is that the reciprocal tariff, which began to be imposed in April last year, entered the liquidation (finalizing tariff amounts) process starting today. Once liquidation is completed, parties must go through legal procedures such as filing objections with CBP or bringing cases before the USCIT, inevitably lengthening the processing time.