New 10% U.S. Import Tariff Announced by President Trump After Supreme Court Strikes Down Original Levies
Following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that overturned most of the Trump administration’s original import tariffs imposed last year, President Trump has announced a new 10 percent tariff will apply to nearly all goods entering the United States.
In an executive order signed Friday evening, Trump established a narrow set of exemptions to the new measure. Excluded imports include critical minerals, beef, fresh fruit, automobiles, pharmaceuticals, and all products originating from Canada or Mexico. The new tariffs are scheduled to go into effect on February 24, 2026.
During a press conference held earlier that same Friday, Trump reacted fiercely to the Supreme Court’s decision, launching personal attacks against the six justices who ruled against his original trade policy. He called the group “a disgrace to our nation.” When a reporter asked why two of Trump’s own Supreme Court nominees — Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett — voted to overturn the original tariffs, Trump doubled down on his criticism, calling the two justices “an embarrassment to their families.”
Trump’s new trade action is rooted in Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act, a statute that allows the president to unilaterally impose immediate tariffs of up to 15 percent when the U.S. faces “large and serious” trade deficits. These tariffs automatically expire after 150 days, unless Congress votes to extend them. Just like the original tariff plan that relied on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), this marks the first time any U.S. president has used Section 122 in this manner.
When the 150-day expiration deadline arrives, Trump could simply reissue the Section 122 tariffs repeatedly to keep the policy in place long-term. Alternatively, the administration can use the 150-day window to put alternative tariff measures in place, essentially switching legal justifications to achieve the same regulatory outcome, according to Gregory Husisian, a partner and litigation attorney at Foley & Lardner LLP. Husisian’s firm has assisted more than 100 companies in filing claims for tariff refunds from the overturned original levies. “Because Section 122 tariffs are only authorized for a limited time, this acts as a bridge authority,” Husisian explained.
In the interim, the Trump administration can fast-track new trade investigations based on claims of national security risks or unfair foreign trade practices — the required prerequisite for imposing tariffs under Section 301 and Section 232 of existing U.S. trade law. “We are also initiating several Section 301 and other investigations to protect our country from unfair trade practices of other countries and companies,” Trump said at the press conference, referencing these slower-to-implement alternative tariff paths.
In a separate executive order, the administration confirmed that the suspension of the de minimis exemption will remain in place, even after the court overturned the original IEEPA-based tariffs. The de minimis rule previously exempted e-commerce packages valued under $800 from import duties, and its suspension last year caused massive package processing backlogs at U.S. borders and drove up prices for consumers on low-cost online shopping platforms.
Trump offered no clear details during the press conference about what will happen to companies seeking refunds for tariffs they paid under the now-overturned original policy. The Supreme Court’s ruling also did not specify whether refunds are required, or what process should be used to issue them. Answering a reporter’s question on the issue, Trump said he expects the matter to be settled through litigation.
Legal experts interviewed by WIRED predict the refund process will be messy and extremely drawn out. Companies will need to file individual claims and calculate the exact sum they believe they are owed, and the federal government is expected to dispute many of those calculations. The full process could take anywhere from a few months to more than two years to resolve for most claimants.
The Supreme Court’s ruling clarified that while IEEPA grants the president broad authority during national emergencies, that power does not extend to imposing new taxes. Trump repeatedly misrepresented the court’s holding during the press conference: “But now the court has given me the unquestioned right to ban all sorts of things from coming into our country, to destroy foreign countries … but not the right to charge a fee,” he said. “How crazy is that?”
At multiple points, the press conference devolved into unscripted rants about topics unrelated to tariff policy. Trump rambled about his view that Europe has become too “woke,” and repeated his longstanding criticism of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. While discussing the Supreme Court’s literal interpretation of IEEPA’s text, Trump abruptly interrupted the topic to brag about his own reading comprehension skills. “I read the paragraphs. I read very well. Great comprehension,” he said.
