The United States has launched the third phase of tariff refunds for diamond and jewellery importers who paid duties imposed under President Donald Trump’s emergency tariff policy. However, the refunds are currently limited to businesses that filed lawsuits against the government and obtained court orders directing customs officials to return the money.

US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) launched Phase III on October 6. The programme covers importers whose cases are before the US Court of International Trade and who have secured orders requiring customs officials to reopen previously finalised import entries, remove the disputed duties and issue refunds.

Although the US Supreme Court struck down the tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) in February, not all affected businesses can claim refunds under the current phase. Legal proceedings are continuing over refunds for importers who did not file individual lawsuits.

To qualify for Phase III, an importer must be a plaintiff in a relevant case and have a court order directing CBP to reassess the import entry and refund the duties. The importer must also have provided a valid Importer of Record number to CBP by July 30. This number identifies the party legally responsible for the customs entry.

On October 8, the Court of International Trade certified a class action covering importers that paid IEEPA tariffs but did not file their own refund lawsuits. The decision could provide a path to refunds for a wider group of businesses. However, it does not mean that all affected importers can immediately claim refunds under Phase III.

Jewelers Vigilance Committee, has advised jewellery businesses to maintain detailed records of tariffs paid, payment dates and related import numbers. These records could help support future refund claims.

US customs officials have estimated that approximately US$166 billion in IEEPA duties were collected across around 53 million import entries. The collections covered a wide range of imported goods, not just diamonds and jewellery.

Importers are advised to review the duties they paid, confirm who was listed as the Importer of Record and check whether their import entries and legal cases meet the refund requirements. The programme does not cover tariffs imposed under other legal authorities.