How to get a refund for Trump tariffs struck down by Supreme Court
The U.S. has refunded more than $100 billion in illegal tariffs to businesses, and some of that money is going to consumers — here's what to know.
August 14, 2026 / 2:47 PM EDT / CBS News
Refunds for illegal U.S. tariffs are starting to flow to businesses , and consumers could get a cut from companies that have vowed to share that financial relief with customers.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency can only issue tariff refunds to the so-called importer of record — the entity that directly paid one of the emergency tariffs struck down by the Supreme Court earlier this year. But businesses that receive refunds for International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, tariffs can choose to keep them in their entirety or pass along some of the money to consumers.
To date, the U.S. government has refunded more than $100 billion in IEEPA tariffs to businesses, or about 60% of what it owes importers, according to a court filing earlier this month.
"There's no way for consumers to get money from customs," Rathna Sharad, CEO of FlavorCloud, an international logistics company that handles customs paperwork for retailers, told CBS News. "If they get them at all, it's directly from carriers who decide to send them refunds."
Although importers aren't legally obligated to refund customers, some businesses have pledged to do so when the tariff cost can be differentiated from an item's total price. UPS, FedEx and DHL have each committed to send refunds to customers on a rolling basis as the U.S. government repays the delivery companies for IEEPA tariffs and have set up refund portals for customers.