Chinese electric-vehicle giant BYD has filed suit against the U.S. federal government, challenging the legality of tariffs imposed under President Donald Trump’s invocation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Four U.S. subsidiaries of BYD brought the complaint to the U.S. Court of International Trade on Jan. 26, seeking repayment of duties they say were unlawfully collected since April of last year.
The company argues that IEEPA does not authorize the levy of tariffs because the statute’s text contains no reference to “tariff” or equivalent powers, a point that mirrors arguments made by thousands of other companies that have contested the administration’s moves. The dispute now sits alongside a high-profile associated case awaiting resolution by the U.S. Supreme Court, which officials say is being handled with unusual care because of the stakes involved.
BYD’s suit is notable less for its immediate commercial exposure in the U.S. passenger-vehicle market—BYD does not currently sell passenger cars in the United States—and more for what it reveals about the reach of China’s industrial champions. The company operates in the U.S. in buses, commercial vehicles, batteries, energy-storage systems and solar panels, and it says it has already filed separate administrative claims to secure refunds while pursuing judicial relief.
If courts ultimately constrain the executive branch’s ability to use emergency economic statutes to impose broad border taxes, the decision would have sizable fiscal and policy consequences. A ruling against the government could require repayment of billions in duties collected from a wide range of firms and would recalibrate the tools available to any U.S. president seeking to respond quickly to perceived strategic threats. For Chinese firms such as BYD, litigation has become another lever—alongside diplomacy and commercial strategy—to defend market access and investment plans abroad.