May 22 was the largest day for tariff revenue collections.
U.S. tariff revenues reached an all-time high in May as President Donald Trump’s trade policies started to fill government coffers.
According to the May 28 Daily Treasury Statement, revenues from “customs and certain excise taxes” climbed to a record high of $23.28 billion this month, up from $17.431 billion in April.
May was the first full month that Trump’s levies took effect. Most of the tax collections occurred on May 22, exceeding $16 billion.
Shortly after his April 2 “Liberation Day” announcement, the administration imposed 10 percent tariffs on nearly every country in the world.
Fiscal year-to-date—the federal government’s fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30—tariff revenues total $93.85 billion.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) says that it has been implementing and enforcing the president’s tariffs “using all our enforcement and revenue collection authorities.”
“CBP enforces tariffs through a combination of legal authority, advanced systems, and operational procedures designed to ensure that duties owed are paid,” the CBP said in a report earlier this month. “We have fulfilled the demand and remain committed to facilitating legitimate trade while upholding a robust enforcement posture.”
Last month, the CBP conducted 33 audits, leading to the collection of $117 million in duties and fees owed to the U.S. government. Officials found that imported goods had been “improperly declared.”
Despite the sizable increase in tariff revenues, it still accounts for a relatively small portion of overall government receipts.
In April, Washington generated $850 billion in revenues, meaning levies represented approximately 2 percent of the total amount.
Despite the president’s estimates, tariffs are only producing less than $1 billion per day for the U.S. government.
During a meeting with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele last month, Trump stated that the United States was “taking in billions and billions of dollars” from his trade agenda.
“We were losing 2 billion a day. … Now we’re making $3 billion a day,” he said.
The president has repeatedly threatened new or higher tariffs since the “Make America Wealthy Again” event on April 2.
“Remember, I am empowered to ‘SET A DEAL’ for Trade into the United States if we are unable to make a deal, or are treated unfairly,” Trump said in a May 27 post on social media platform Truth Social.
By Andrew Moran
