Consumers who purchased items from overseas vendors last year may be eligible for refunds on tariffs paid. Shippers including FedEx and UPS have begun passing on government refunds to customers who originally paid the tariffs after acting as customs brokers for imported packages.
The distribution of refunds follows a process that began in February after the Supreme Court struck down sweeping tariffs implemented by President Donald Trump in March 2025. These tariffs, enacted under the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act, applied to goods from nearly every country. The court ordered the government to return the collected tariffs, and approximately $100 billion has been refunded to companies through a system established by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
FedEx stated it has started issuing $800 million in tariff refunds received from the government back to customers. While customers do not need to apply, they can use tracking numbers on the FedEx website to check for eligibility. UPS reported it had paid $5 billion in tariffs for clients and applied for $500 million in initial refunds. UPS noted customers should receive refunds one to three months after the company receives reimbursement from the Treasury.
DHL has filed claims for nearly all eligible shipments where it served as the importer of record and is returning refunds as they are received. DHL stated that the pace of these refunds depends on how quickly Customs and Border Protection processes the claims.
Major retailers are handling refunds differently. Amazon reported receiving $600 million in tariff refunds during the second quarter. Amazon CFO Brian Olsavsky stated that while the company is not the importer of record for most goods, it will proactively contact and automatically refund customers in specific circumstances where import charges can be traced. Otherwise, the company intends to use refunds to lower prices.
Other retailers indicated they would use refunds to provide value to customers. Former Best Buy CEO Cori Barrie stated the company is the importer of record for only 2% to 3% of its sales. Costco CEO Ron Vachris said the company plans to return tariffs in some form, depending on the amount and timing of received refunds.
More than 80 class-action lawsuits have been filed by customers against retailers such as Walmart, Nike, Amazon, and Costco seeking refunds for price increases. However, legal expert Lori Leskin noted that plaintiffs may face difficulties proving that specific price increases were directly tied to tariffs rather than other market forces. As of now, none of these lawsuits have been certified as class actions.
