US court rules against Trump's economic policy What the customs ruling means for Switzerland
A US appeals court has declared the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration to be illegal. Is this the end of the tariff war? What does the decision mean for Switzerland? An overview.
30.08.2025, 11:20
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- A US appeals court has ruled that President Trump may not impose tariffs with reference to a national emergency, as this falls within the jurisdiction of Congress.
- The tariffs will remain in place for the time being, as the ruling will not take effect until October 14 and Trump intends to appeal to the Supreme Court.
- Nothing is currently changing for Switzerland; many exports are still subject to tariffs of up to 39%, while the impact on bilateral agreements is still unclear.
What did the judges decide?
The judges are less concerned about the tariffs as such, but rather the legal arguments used by the US President. He claims that there is a state of emergency - and that the application of a corresponding law from 1977 is therefore justified.
Trump points to an imbalance in international trade to the detriment of the USA and believes that the United States has been treated unfairly. He blames Switzerland, for example, for a trade deficit of 40 billion dollars. For the Confederation, however, the bilateral trade balance is balanced.
The law states that a president can issue decrees in the event of a crisis without having to appeal to Congress - the US parliament. However, in the case of the far-reaching tariffs on imported products and the emergency law invoked for this purpose, the Court of Appeal has now denied the President such authority - as did the lower court. The judges emphasized that tariffs are a core competence of the US Congress.
Has this stopped the tariffs?
Not for the time being. The decision will not come into force until October 14 - giving the US government time to appeal it to the Supreme Court. This is exactly what Trump now wants to do - in the hope that the Supreme Court judges, who have moved to the right during his first term in office, will rule in his favor. He also rushed to counter the impression of defeat. Shortly after the decision, he wrote on his Truth Social platform: "All tariffs are still in force!"
In any case, the previous Federal Court ruling was not about all tariffs. For example, duties on cars, steel, aluminum, pharmaceuticals and semiconductors were excluded.
What does the decision mean for Switzerland?
Nothing will change for Switzerland for the time being. For most products that Switzerland exports to the USA, a tariff rate of 39 percent has applied since August 7. The pharmaceutical industry has not yet been affected by the additional tariffs. The US President also spoke out against tariffs on gold.
Strictly speaking, the US court in a lower court referred to an earlier ruling from April. At that time, Trump had announced high tariffs against a large number of countries on a huge board in the White House Rose Garden. A tariff of 31% was originally announced for Switzerland. In the weeks and months that followed, however, there were deadline extensions, negotiations and letters from the White House - tariff rates were lowered in some cases and, in the case of Switzerland, raised even further. Trump continued to use the alleged state of emergency as a basis for his arguments.
What does the decision mean for bilateral agreements?
The impact of the US Court of Appeal's decision on countries that have reached an agreement with the USA was initially unclear. The EU and the USA concluded a customs deal at the end of July. Since August 7, most EU products imported into the USA have been subject to a 15 percent tariff.
