On October 8, 2026, the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) granted a broad class certification for importers subject to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) tariff regime, which the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) invalidated on February 20 (see Update of February 20, 2026).
CIT Senior Judge Richard K. Eaton’s order certifies a class of importers of record that paid IEEPA tariffs between February 1, 2025, and February 19, 2026. The class exempts any entity that has already filed a separate action seeking to recover paid IEEPA duties.
Judge Eaton said he hopes the “certification will lead to the liquidation or reliquidation of all of the entries on which the unlawful IEEPA duties were imposed, and the refund of those duties to the importers of record that paid them.”
Judge Eaton noted that the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) system, which administers IEEPA refunds, has been “remarkabl[y] successful.” According to a declaration filed with the court by U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP’s) Executive Director of Trade Programs, Brandon Lord, around $126 billion in duties, plus interest, has already been refunded through CBP.
Class actions are exceptionally rare at the CIT. There has only been one other certified class since the court was established in its present form in 1980.
Link to Implications for Importers of Record Implications for Importers of Record
- Importers of record that have already filed suits with the CIT are not in the class. The certified class are all importers of record that paid IEEPA tariffs between February 1, 2025, and February 19, 2026. It expressly “exclude[es] any entity that has separately filed an action seeking to recover IEEPA duties payments.”
- Importers of record that have filed a suit with the CIT have the relief they are seeking because the CIT “has previously ordered reliquidation of entries in more than 4,000 lawsuits brought by individual importers.” (See Judge Richard K. Eaton’s order certifying the class.)
- Importers of record that have not yet filed an action with the CIT have a possible path to refunds without suing; however, they do not yet have a right to payment. The order creates a path toward a single order requiring refunds for importers that haven’t sued.
- The class matters most where finally liquidated entries are concerned. The federal government’s position is that it cannot reliquidate finally liquidated entries without a court order.
- The class certification aims at “overwhelmingly small importers” that have not filed CAPE declarations due to the cost or the effort, or because they were not aware of the program.
An appeal of this class certification order by the Department of Justice is possible, and any future determination will depend on how a court rules in response to that appeal.