It’s hard enough for online sellers to keep track of marketplace rules, taxes, and regulations, but 2025 brought a new area of concern: tariffs. The Supreme Court is expected to rule early in 2026 on whether the IEEPA tariffs the current administration imposed last year are legal. If not, the government must issue refunds to those who paid customs duties on imported goods into US.
Eagle-eyed Marianne Rowden of E-Merchants Trade Council, Inc. (EMTC) tipped us off to news published on the Federal Register on January 2nd: The US DHS’s Customs and Border Protection is planning to issue all refunds electronically this year, referencing President Trump’s Executive Order from last March mandating the transition from paper checks to electronic payments for all Federal disbursements.
As a reminder, IEEPA – the International Emergency Economic Powers Act – provides the President broad authority to regulate a variety of economic transactions following a declaration of national emergency. Certain importers challenged the tariffs, and the Supreme Court heard the case in November and has yet to rule.
Merchants who think they may qualify for tariff-related refunds, including any resulting from potential IEEPA refunds, should check to see if they’re set up to receive refunds via ACH or have designed their customs broker to receive refunds. The January 2nd Federal Register notice has more details than you could ever want on the topic, and Rowden suggested merchants contact her organization (emtc.org) with questions.
Whatever way the Supreme Court rules on the legality of IEEPA tariffs, 2026 will likely see more “excitement” if last year was any indication. For those attending CES conference this week, take note of Wednesday’s session, “Competing in a Trade-Disrupted World.”
