Hanwha Q CELLS' Dalton, Georgia plant in the United States. Yonhap News

Hanwha Q CELLS, which manufactures solar modules in the U.S. using imported raw materials, has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration to reclaim tariffs.

This is the first confirmed instance of a Korean company filing a tariff refund lawsuit.

According to the U.S. Court of International Trade (USCIT) on the 21st (local time), Hanwha Q CELLS' U.S. subsidiary filed a lawsuit against Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on the 18th, requesting that the tariffs imposed by President Trump under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) be invalidated.

Hanwha Q CELLS also requested the court to issue a preliminary injunction to prevent CBP from imposing further tariffs and to order a full refund of tariffs already paid by the company.

The amount of tariffs to be refunded was not disclosed.

Various tariffs imposed by President Trump under IEEPA have previously been ruled unlawful by lower courts, and the case is currently under review by the Supreme Court.

Following doubts expressed by a majority of Supreme Court justices regarding the administration's logic in a hearing on November 5th, there have been observations that a ruling on the unlawfulness of the tariffs is highly probable.

Subsequently, numerous companies in the U.S., Japan, and other countries, which had previously hesitated to file lawsuits due to concerns about the Trump administration's stance, have filed tariff refund lawsuits. Hanwha Q CELLS is reportedly the first Korean company to do so.

A review of the lawsuits filed with the USCIT by Yonhap News as of this date revealed no other Korean companies apart from Hanwha Q CELLS.

Hanwha Q CELLS argued in its complaint that even if the IEEPA tariffs are invalidated by the Supreme Court, there is no guarantee that importers, including Hanwha Q CELLS, will receive a refund. Therefore, legal relief through this lawsuit is necessary.

The company also stated that a USCIT order is necessary to preserve its right to a refund, as the CBP, which collects the tariffs, finalizes the tariff settlement, making it irreversible.

Under U.S. import regulations, importers pay an estimated tariff based on their tariff declaration. Subsequently, CBP reviews the declaration and determines the final tariff amount, a process known as liquidation.

Regulations stipulate that liquidation should occur within one year, but CBP typically performs it 314 days after customs clearance. The plaintiff claims that after final liquidation, it may become impossible to receive a tariff refund.

U.S. retailer Costco. AFP Yonhap News

Tariff refund lawsuits gained attention when U.S. retail giant Costco filed one last month.

Costco's lawsuit was based on the same grounds as Hanwha Q CELLS'. However, on the 15th, the USCIT dismissed Costco's preliminary injunction request, stating that the company failed to prove irreparable harm.

The USCIT explained that the Trump administration had stated it would not oppose a reassessment of tariffs if the Supreme Court ruled them unlawful, meaning the plaintiff could receive a refund without filing this lawsuit.

Given the substantial similarity in the lawsuits, it appears likely that the court will also dismiss Hanwha Q CELLS' preliminary injunction request.

Hanwha Q CELLS manufactures solar modules in the United States by importing polysilicon.

According to a statement submitted by Hanwha Q CELLS to the U.S. Department of Commerce in August, the company procures all of its polysilicon for its U.S. plant from Malaysia.

Furthermore, solar cells made from Malaysian polysilicon are imported into the U.S. from South Korea and Malaysia and then manufactured into solar modules.

On April 2nd, President Trump declared a national emergency, citing the U.S.'s chronic, large-scale trade deficit as a major threat to national security and the economy, and announced the imposition of "reciprocal tariffs" on various countries based on IEEPA.

At the time, South Korea was subject to a 25% IEEPA tariff. However, South Korea later reduced this tariff to 15% in exchange for a commitment to invest $350 billion in the U.S.

Malaysia's initial tariff was 25%, but it was subsequently reduced to 19% through negotiations.