FedEx has initiated legal action demanding a refund of US tariffs that the Supreme Court recently deemed unlawful. The lawsuit, lodged in the US Court of International Trade, calls for Customs and Border Protection, the agency responsible for tariff collection, to reimburse FedEx. The company is anticipated to be among numerous corporations seeking similar refunds.
While FedEx has not specified the exact amount it is pursuing, analysts estimate that the emergency tariffs, initiated by former President Donald Trump a year prior and subsequently rejected by the US Supreme Court, generated approximately $US175 billion ($247 billion) for the US government. Scott Lincicome, an economist at the Cato Institute, stated that this action was expected, given the potentially millions of dollars at stake for FedEx. FedEx is a multinational delivery services company, providing transportation, e-commerce and business services. The company moves more than 18 million packages per day.
The Trump administration’s legal representatives indicated last year that the government would comply with refund orders if the tariffs were found to be unlawful. However, Trump hinted last week that refund claims might face legal challenges. FedEx often remits customs payments to the government as an importer of record, typically transferring these charges to the recipients of the goods.
In a statement released on Monday, FedEx affirmed that it has taken the necessary steps to protect its rights as an importer of record in seeking duty refunds. It is anticipated that many other large corporations will join FedEx in demanding refunds, as numerous companies had already filed lawsuits against the emergency tariffs prior to the Supreme Court’s ruling. Experts suggest that FedEx’s customers will likely expect the company to pass on any refunds received, with larger clients expected to have established procedures for reimbursement.
