A U.S. federal appeals court backed this Thursday the decision for President Donald Trump‘s administration to continue applying the global 10% levy imposed by the Republican in February after the Supreme Court invalidated much of his previous tariff scheme.
The court thus handed the Trump administration a temporary victory today by allowing the fees to continue being collected while the legal process against these tariffs moves forward, applied under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 and set to expire at the end of July if not extended by Congress.
Justice allowed Trump to keep collecting the global tariff imposed in February
In May, a panel of the International Trade Court in New York ruled 2-1 in favor of a lawsuit filed by small businesses and determined that these new tariffs were “invalid” and “not authorized by law,” considering that Trump had exceeded the tariff authority delegated by Congress.
Section 122, which had not been invoked until now to justify import taxes, gives the U.S. president the ability to impose global tariffs of up to 15% for 150 days, after which approval from lawmakers is required to extend that period.
After the Supreme Court setback, Trump threatened in February to raise the new levy on U.S. trading partners to as much as 15%, although he has not done so yet.
The Supreme Court ruled that the president did not have the authority to impose tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) of 1977, the basis for much of the aggressive tariff policy launched by Trump since returning to power in January 2025 for a second term.
Last April, the U.S. government began the process of refunding some $166 billion illegally collected through the tariffs struck down by the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court ruling affects the tariffs Washington calls “reciprocal,” imposed by the Republicans to “reduce the trade deficit” of the U.S. with its partners, as well as the additional 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada to pressure those countries to curb the flow of fentanyl.
Source: EFE.