First Tariff Refunds Expected May 11

A Supreme Court ruling cleared the way for refunds on billions in tariffs, though questions remain over whether consumers will see any money.

Kelly McBride Ni

Published: 5/2/2026, 5:27:53 AM EDT

First Tariff Refunds Expected May 11 — Shipping containers at the Port of Baltimore in Baltimore on Aug. 7, 2025. (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)

The first refunds tied to President Donald Trump’s overturned tariffs are expected around May 11, according to a filing in the U.S. Court of International Trade, launching what could become one of the largest government repayment efforts in recent history.

The refunds stem from a February U.S. Supreme Court decision in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump and a consolidated case, Trump v. V.O.S. Selections, Inc., which ruled that the president exceeded his authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) in imposing sweeping tariffs.

The refund process could eventually return about $166 billion in duties paid by more than 330,000 importers across roughly 53 million entries, according to court records.

In a Tuesday order, Judge Richard Eaton of the U.S. Court of International Trade said about 21 percent of eligible tariff entries had already been accepted for duty removal through a process known as Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries, or CAPE.

Roughly 3 percent have entered the refund stage, including Treasury payment processing, according to the filing. About 1.74 million accepted entries had been liquidated and were in the refund process as of April 26.

Consumer Refunds and Lawsuits

The Supreme Court ruling left unresolved whether businesses that raised prices because of tariffs should refund consumers who ultimately paid the higher costs. That question is now driving class-action lawsuits against major retailers and consumer brands.

Law firm Ballard Spahr, in a March advisory analyzing the lawsuits, said the cases present significant, rapidly escalating litigation risk for companies that passed on tariff costs to consumers and are now pursuing refunds from the government.

The firm cited at least four lawsuits filed between Feb. 26 and March 16, including Russell v. Whaleco Inc., Ward v. EssilorLuxottica S.A., and two separate actions against Costco.

One complaint filed in Stockov v. Costco Wholesale Corp. in federal court in Illinois argues that “the lawsuit seeks to prevent Costco, the third-largest retailer in the world, from double recovery,” and argues that the retailer “has made no commitment to return any portion of anticipated tariff refunds to the consumers who bore those costs.”

According to Ballard Spahr, "double recovery" refers to collecting government refunds after already passing tariff costs on to customers through higher prices.

"Put otherwise, if a company charged consumers higher prices to account for tariffs, and then receives a government refund of those same tariffs, the company has allegedly been made whole twice — once by its customers and once by the government," the law firm wrote, adding that "the consumer, meanwhile, has no direct mechanism to recover the tariff component embedded in the price they paid."

Only a handful of major companies have publicly committed to returning tariff-related money directly or indirectly to consumers.

According to statements reviewed by Money.com, FedEx, UPS, and DHL said they plan to return refunds in situations where customers originally paid the duties and the companies acted as importers of record.

Costco Chief Executive Ron Vachris said during a March earnings call, according to a company transcript, that the retailer would use any refunds to provide lower prices and better values for members, though the company stopped short of promising direct reimbursements.

“As we have done in the past, when legal challenges have recovered charges passed on in some form to our members, our commitment will be to find the best way to return this value to our members through lower prices and better values,” Vachris said.

“We will be transparent in how we plan to do this if and when we receive any refunds,” he said.

In late February, FedEx was sued in federal court in Miami in a proposed class-action case seeking refunds for customers who paid import duties and fees on shipments that plaintiffs argue should have entered the U.S. duty-free.

FedEx said in February that “If refunds are issued to FedEx, we will issue refunds to the shippers and consumers who originally bore those charges.” FedEx also sued the federal government to recover tariffs it paid on imported goods under the IEEPA.

Most major retailers have not publicly committed to consumer refunds or rebates, according to Money.com.

Before the court ruling, Trump floated the idea of using tariff revenue to fund government operations and reduce the tax burden on Americans. He also proposed sending about $2,000 "tariff dividend" checks to moderate- and low-income taxpayers, funded by revenue from the duties.

During an interview with CNBC on April 21, Trump was asked about reports that Amazon and Apple Inc. had delayed seeking refunds over concerns it would upset the president.

“It’s brilliant if they don’t do that,” Trump said. “If they don’t do that, I will remember them.”

Reuters contributed to this report.