US Politics
The companies that have sued the Trump administration for tariff refunds
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The U.S. government is readying a system within 45 days to process refunds on U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs that were struck down as illegal, a customs official said in a court filing Friday.
The declaration by Customs and Border Protection official Brandon Lord came just before government lawyers met with a federal trade judge to try to hammer out a broad settlement process for returning $166 billion in tariff payments to around 330,000 importers.
Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down as unconstitutional the tariffs that were a central part of Trump’s economic policy. The court did not say how the collected tariffs should be refunded, leaving small importers worried the process would be expensive and time-consuming.
“This new process will require minimal submission from importers,” Lord said in his declaration, filed with the U.S. Court of International Trade as government lawyers began meeting with Judge Richard Eaton from the court.
Eaton called the meeting to discuss how the government will carry out his sweeping order issued on Wednesday directing the CBP to begin refunding tariffs to potentially hundreds of thousands of importers using the agency’s existing internal process.
On Friday, after concluding the meeting with the government lawyers, he said in a court filing he was amending that order to no longer require “immediate compliance,” and appeared to be giving CBP time to carry out the new system. Eaton said he changed his order after considering the “declaration of Brandon Lord.”
Eaton said in his Wednesday order that he had been appointed by the trade court to hear the roughly 2,000 lawsuits filed by importers including FedEx and L’Oreal seeking refunds.
Trade lawyers said those lawsuits were the tip of the iceberg, and thousands more were prepared to sue if the government failed to develop a system for automatic refunds.
Affiliates of Nintendo and CVS became the latest large companies to sue for refunds on Friday.
Here are some of the other major companies that have filed cases against the administration so far:
Company
Date Filed
Details
Mondelez
March 6, 2026
The Cadbury-parent sued the U.S. government and requested a refund of all IEEPA duties collected.
FedEx
February 23, 2026
Global transportation company FedEx filed a lawsuit in the U.S. Court of International Trade seeking a refund for President Donald Trump’s emergency tariffs.
BYD
February 9, 2026
The Chinese automaker has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government challenging President Trump’s bid to use sweeping authority to impose tariffs, and requesting a refund for all levies it paid since last April, court documents show.
Prada
February 6, 2026
The luxury company sued the U.S. government and requested the U.S. Court of International Trade to order a refund of the IEEPA duties collected.
Staples
January 20, 2026
The office supply company filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government seeking a refund for the IEEPA duties collected, saying the tariffs were unlawful.
Tom Ford Distribution
January 8, 2026
A subsidiary of the fashion group sued the U.S. government requesting the court to order the government to refund the IEEPA duties collected on imports along with interest.
J Crew Group
January 6, 2026
The New York-based company sought similar protections as Dole Fresh, including a full refund of tariffs paid under the IEEPA to date.
Dole Fresh Fruit Company
January 2, 2026
Filed a lawsuit to seek a declaration that tariffs under IEEPA were unlawful, a full refund for all tariffs under the order paid to the U.S., and an injunction to prevent imposition of future tariffs under the order.
GoPro
December 24, 2025
Filed a protective suit at the CIT to challenge Trump’s IEEPA‑based tariffs and secure refunds of duties paid on imported camera equipment.
Barnes & Noble Purchasing
December 22, 2025
The company sued U.S. Customs and Border Protection to seek refunds of IEEPA duties and a ruling that President Trump lacks authority under IEEPA to impose tariffs.
BorgWarner
December 12, 2025
The auto parts maker filed a lawsuit asking for the CIT to hold the tariffs imposed under IEEPA unlawful, and sought protection for its right to a complete refund of tariffs paid, according to a court filing.
Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
December 10, 2025
Filed a protective lawsuit at the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) challenging the tariffs imposed under emergency powers, and sought a right to a refund and an injunction preventing further tariffs under the IEEPA.
Costco Wholesale
November 28, 2025
Sued the U.S. government to ensure it will receive refunds if the Supreme Court rejects President Donald Trump’s bid for sweeping authority to impose tariffs.
EssilorLuxottica
November 26, 2025
Filed to overturn sweeping IEEPA tariffs and preserve refund rights as duties on imported frames and lenses became costly under the emergency tariff regime.
Alcoa
November 26, 2025
Joined wave of importers challenging IEEPA tariffs, seeking a declaration the duties are unlawful and demanding refunds of all amounts paid.
Toyota subsidiaries
November 21, 2025
Filed protective suits to challenge the legality of IEEPA tariffs and ensure access to refunds.
Bumble Bee Foods
November 18, 2025
Argued trafficking‑based and reciprocal tariffs were unlawful under IEEPA and requested full reimbursement of duties.
Revlon
November 14, 2025
Sought to suspend liquidation and recover tariff payments, arguing IEEPA does not authorize the sweeping tariffs imposed by the administration.
Kawasaki Motors Manufacturing Corp USA & affiliates
November 13, 2025
Sued to contest emergency tariff orders and avoid losing refund rights ahead of liquidation.
Yokohama Tire
November 10, 2025
Filed to challenge IEEPA tariffs and seek refunds, arguing duties were imposed without legal authority.
Yamazaki Mazak
November 10, 2025
Challenged emergency tariffs that increased costs for imported machinery, seeking refunds and declaratory relief.
Lord said in the court filing that the customs agency expected importers to file a declaration with the CBP’s computer system known as ACE detailing tariff payments, which would then be validated before refunds are processed with interest. The importers would not have to sue.
Each importer would receive a single payment from the Treasury Department, regardless of how many separate entries of goods the importer had made.
Lord did not estimate how long it would take to process the refunds, but said the CBP would not be able to comply with Eaton’s order from Wednesday. Eaton contemplated refunds would be automatically returned to importers through the existing system without documentation or input from the importer.
“Its existing administrative procedures and technology are not well-suited to a task of this scale and will require manual work that will prevent personnel from fully carrying out the agency’s trade enforcement mission,” Lord said in explaining why the agency could not use its existing system.
He said importers had paid an estimated $166 billion in tariffs on more than 53 million shipments. Eaton’s order would have required the agency to manually review paperwork on every shipment, a process Lord said would require more than 4 million hours of labor.
‘PRACTICAL PROPOSAL’
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the largest U.S. business lobbying group, applauded the CBP’s 45-day plan as “a constructive and practical proposal” to administer refunds efficiently.
“Most importantly, this proposal would spare the hundreds of thousands of small businesses who are owed refunds from having to litigate to obtain them,” the Chamber’s chief policy officer, Neil Bradley, said in a statement that also encouraged further refinements.
However, Lord’s declaration also indicated that few importers had signed up for the CBP’s electronic system for refunds. Out of more than 330,000 importers who paid the illegal duties, only 21,423 signed up for the electronic refund system that went into place on February 6, according to Lord.
Eaton is overseeing a refund lawsuit by Atmus Filtration Inc, which the judge is using as a vehicle to order CBP to issue the refunds for all importers.
