Here's When the SCOTUS Will Rule on President Donald Trump's Tariffs

The Supreme Court of the United States heard oral arguments about President Donald Trump's global tariffs on Nov. 5, 2025, and people are curious as to when a ruling will be issued. According to Reuters, the SCOTUS justices were skeptical of Trump's authority to enforce tariffs. Trump imposed the global tariffs under the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), which is a law regulating imports during national emergencies and has no tariff references.

Trump imposed the tariffs back in February, taxing products from Mexico, Canada, and China. The president claimed that drug traffickers were selling drugs in the U.S. from Mexico, China, and Canada and declared it an emergency. Trump imposed tariffs again in April and ordered 10 to 50 percent tariffs on products for nearly every country exporting to the U.S., per the BBC.

A ruling about Trump's tariffs isn't expected until early 2026, although some experts think a ruling may be handed down by the SCOTUS sooner. The panel consists of nine judges — six conservative judges and three liberal judges — and some of the conservative judges who were appointed by Trump pushed back after the White House justified the tariffs by claiming they were necessary to balance trade and manufacturing in the U.S., also per the BBC.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett asked, "And so is it your contention that every country needed to be tariffed because of threats to the defense and industrial base? I mean, Spain? France? I could see it with some countries, but explain to me why as many countries needed to be subject to the reciprocal tariff policy as are."

Chief Justice John Roberts also questioned Trump's justification for the tariffs. Under the Constitution, only Congress has the power to tax, not the president.

"The justification is being used for power to impose tariffs on any product from any country in any amount," he said. "For any length of time."

Conservative Judge Neil Gorsuch also wondered about the implications of ruling in Trump's favor and said he was "struggling" to accept the justification for the tariffs.

"What would prohibit Congress from just abdicating all responsibility to regulate foreign commerce? Could the president impose a 50 percent tariff on gas-powered cars and autoparts to deal with the unusual and extraordinary threat from abroad of climate change?"

Justice Amy Coney Barrett added that if the courts declared Trump's tariffs illegal, the U.S. would have to give refunds to importers who paid tariffs, which would create "a mess."

Neal Katyal is an attorney representing the businesses arguing against Trump's tariffs, and he noted that his while his clients would get refunds automatically if the SCOTUS ruled against the president. However, other businesses would need to file an administrative protest to get refunds.

"It's a very complicated thing," he said.

According to WBALTV, the federal government raised $195 billion in tariffs in 2025, which is more than double the amount the U.S. collected in 2024.