US customs duties: money returns to Switzerland

Millions of dollars paid to the American customs are returning to the coffers of Swiss companies. After a decision by the United States Supreme Court, several exporters have obtained the reimbursement of surcharges deemed wrongly collected. For large companies, the amounts are spectacular; for an SME, even a more modest reimbursement can change an end of quarter, lighten a line of credit or give breathing space to a margin crushed by export costs.

The subject is not only legal or diplomatic. It is very concrete: who actually paid the duties, who can submit the request, how to account for the reimbursement, what to do if the tax had been re-invoiced to the American client, and how to integrate the new customs duties of 12.5% which remain, according to RTS and Le Matin, current. Swiss companies active in the United States therefore have an interest in treating this file as a financial operation in its own right, and not as a simple good news read in the press.

An American decision that reopens import files

According to the research file citing KPMG, the American Supreme Court invalidated on 20 February 2026 customs duties imposed by the Trump administration based on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. The central question was about the power of the American executive to impose customs taxes without Congress's agreement. In the articles relayed by Le Matin and RTS, the decision notably targets a large part of the surcharges applied to Swiss imports.

To understand the issue, it is necessary to recall what a customs duty is: a tax levied on the importation of a good into a country. It increases the cost of the foreign product at the moment it enters the concerned market. In a commercial chain, this cost can be borne by the Swiss exporter, by its American subsidiary, by the local importer or, indirectly, by the final client if the sale price has been adjusted. It is precisely this mechanism that makes reimbursement requests more delicate than they seem.

The surcharges mentioned by Le Matin reached 39% on Swiss imports between August and December 2025. RTS also mentions, in the case of Felco, a first phase at 39% then a second at 15%. These levels could represent a major cost for Swiss manufacturers selling machines, tools, consumer goods or industrial products to the United States. In some cases, the company absorbed the supplement to preserve its market shares; in others, it passed it on in whole or in part. The treatment of the reimbursement will therefore depend on the contractual and accounting reality of each file.

Stadler, Victorinox, Kuhn Rikon: the amounts set the tone

The first Swiss examples show that the reimbursements are not theoretical. According to Le Matin and RTS, Stadler Rail had paid about 10 million dollars in customs duties and has already recovered two-thirds. Victorinox obtained more than 4 million dollars out of the 4.5 million claimed. Kuhn Rikon claims to have received more than 90% of the amounts requested. ABB also confirms a reimbursement, without a published amount.

Felco illustrates another situation, more progressive. Its boss, quoted by RTS, indicates that the company exports a quarter of its production of secateurs to the United States and that it has requested the reimbursement of duties collected in two phases. At this stage, about 20% of the total amounts would have been recovered, the procedure continuing with the aim of obtaining all the sums due. This difference in pace reminds us that it is not enough to be concerned by the decision: shipments must also be identified, documented and correctly linked to the annulled duties.

Le Matin also reports that Washington had already reimbursed some 86 billion dollars in customs duties at the beginning of July, while 35 billion more were still under review, according to court documents cited by the Zurich newspaper. The research file also mentions, based on Boursorama, potential reimbursements of 35.46 billion dollars concerning about 8.3 million shipments. These figures give the administrative scale of the task: the requests are numerous, the supporting documents must be solid and the American authorities are handling considerable volumes.

The request often plays out with the American importer

For a Swiss SME, the first question to ask is not fiscal, but operational: who imported the goods into the United States and who paid the duties? Le Matin indicates that requests are submitted to the American customs, either by the American subsidiaries of Swiss companies or by their American importers. Thermoplan specifies, for example, that it is its American clients who carried out the formalities. RTS also notes that the procedure is done online.

This reality can create a gap between the economic cost and the right to reimbursement. A Swiss company may have suffered the commercial pressure of the surcharge, without being the one who formally paid it to the American customs. Conversely, a subsidiary or an importer may receive the reimbursement, even though the purchase price had been adjusted upstream. Contracts, order confirmations, invoices, credits, delivery conditions and commercial exchanges then become essential to determine who actually benefits economically from the reimbursement.

In an SME, it is worth reconstructing a table by shipment: date, client or importer, invoice reference, product, amount of duty paid, entity that paid, possible re-invoicing to the client, request submitted, status and receipt. This tracking may seem administrative, but it avoids two classic risks: leaving money in the United States due to an incomplete file, or recording a reimbursement without having verified obligations towards a commercial partner.

Swissmem, according to Le Matin and RTS, says it is pleasantly surprised by the progress of the reimbursements and notes that companies that quickly submitted their file obtain the best results. The message is clear for Swiss exporters: do not wait for the annual closure to search the customs archives. The more time passes, the more difficult it becomes to gather the pieces, especially when the goods have passed through a distributor, a subsidiary or an importing client.

Accounting and taxes: a reimbursement is not a free bonus

From an accounting point of view, the reimbursement of a customs duty must be linked to the initial treatment of the charge. If the tax had been recorded as a purchase cost, export expense or customs charge, the reimbursement generally corrects the economic impact of this charge. Depending on the period concerned, the presentation may differ: correction of a charge, exceptional product or adjustment related to a previous financial year. The choice must be consistent with the accounts already closed, the standards applied and the available supporting documents.

For tax purposes, caution is required. If a company has deducted customs duties for tax purposes and then receives a reimbursement, the taxable result may be affected. It is necessary to check the accounting period, the date of birth of the right to reimbursement, the date of receipt and the possible treatment in the consolidated accounts when a Swiss group owns an American structure. A fiduciary must also monitor exchange rate effects: amounts are often denominated in dollars, while Swiss accounting is kept in another functional or presentation currency.

Swiss VAT also calls for a concrete analysis. A customs duty paid in the United States is not Swiss VAT. But if the surcharge influenced the invoiced price, gave rise to a credit, modified a margin or led to a compensation with a client, the real flows must be examined. The reimbursement received by a foreign entity, then transferred to a Swiss company, is not automatically treated as a sale. The qualification depends on the contract and the reason for the payment. This is typically the kind of situation where a too-quick accounting entry can create a fiscal or documentary inconsistency.

It is also necessary to think about the client relationship. If the American price had been explicitly increased due to the surcharge, some clients might request a correction. If the Swiss company absorbed the cost without passing it on, the reimbursement directly improves its margin. Between these two cases, there are many nuances: future discounts, partial credits, commercial agreements, importer participation or compensation with administrative fees. Before announcing a gain, management should therefore check what the commercial documents say.

The new duties maintain pressure on margins

The Supreme Court's decision does not mean the end of the American customs risk. Le Matin and RTS remind us that new American customs duties of 12.5% are now in force. The watchmaking sector hopes to obtain an exemption, a strategy supported by Georges Kern, CEO of Breitling, according to the same sources. Le Matin also indicates that certain sectors, such as pharmaceuticals, Nespresso or Pilatus, already benefit from exceptions.

For SMEs, this instability changes the way prices are set. A quote for the American market can no longer be constructed as if customs duties were a secondary parameter. It is necessary to provide clauses allowing for handling an increase or decrease in taxes, clarify who bears the import costs and document the price formation. Without this, a company risks winning a customs dispute while losing its margin in the commercial negotiation.

Cash flow is the other issue. An expected reimbursement should not be confused with available liquidity. As long as the funds are not received, the company bears the financing need. Conversely, when a significant amount arrives, it can be tempting to consider it as a windfall. A healthier approach is to relate it to historical charges, suffered margin losses and working capital needs in the United States. For some companies, the reimbursement will mainly serve to rebuild a reserve against new taxes.

The American file finally reminds us of a simple rule: export is not only a matter of sales, but also of evidence. Companies that have fine traceability of shipments, paid duties and contractual responsibilities are better equipped to recover what is due to them. In a still shifting commercial climate, the fiduciary has a key role to play: transforming a distant judicial decision into secured receipts, coherent entries and more robust pricing decisions for the future.