US to Prepare Tariff Rebate System within 45 Days

ILLUSTRATION UNSPLASH/Assiolo Scolaro

JAKARTA - The US customs authority stated in a filing to the International Trade Court that it was working to build a system for returning import duties, with plans to implement it within 45 days.

The development comes after the US Supreme Court overturned President Donald Trump's massive global tariffs in a landmark ruling on February 20, saying he overstepped his presidential authority in imposing tariffs last year without seeking congressional approval.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said in the filing that as of Wednesday, the agency had collected import duties of $166 billion (Rp2.812 trillion) from more than 330,000 importers in more than 53 million entries.

The agency, which uses what is called the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) Electronic Trade System to record imported goods, said it is working to add new functions to the system to issue import duty refunds efficiently.

"CBP is making every possible effort to prepare this new ACE function to be ready for use in 45 days," he added.

Soon after the US Supreme Court overturned the tariffs, Trump replaced them with sweeping tariffs based on a different legal authority.