Multinational retail giant Costco has sued the US government, seeking a full refund of import tariffs if the Supreme Court rejects President Donald Trump's authority to impose tariffs without congressional approval.
Costco's lawsuit calls on the federal trade court to declare Trump's “emergency” tariffs illegal, which the president says he has under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).
Two lower courts have already ruled that Trump exceeded his authority by using emergency powers to impose the tariffs.
The case has now reached the Supreme Court, with several companies trying to defend their rights to reimbursement if judges strike down the tariffs.
In the lawsuit filed on Thanksgiving Day, Costco said its business was hurt by the tariffs and expressed concern that it would not get its money back even if the high court upheld previous rulings.
Costco's lawyers said that “separate actions must be taken” because reimbursement is not guaranteed “absent their own judgment and relief.”
The world's third-largest retailer has not said how much it is seeking back, but trading data Importers such as Costco had already paid about $90 billion in IEEPA-related duties as of late September, according to the U.S. Customs Agency.
Costco filed the lawsuit in the U.S. Court of International Trade ahead of a Dec. 15, 2025 deadline after which it will be hard-pressed to recoup any funds it paid to the government.
In May, the court was the first to rule that Trump's tariffs were illegal, a decision that was later upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals.
At a hearing last month, Supreme Court justices expressed skepticism about the president's authority to impose levies without congressional approval.
Trump administration lawyers argued in court that emergency powers give the president the power to impose global tariffs.
The administration warned that an unfavorable decision would limit its ability to negotiate with countries and the Treasury would lose billions it had already collected.
“The economic consequences of not enforcing President Trump's lawful tariffs are enormous, and this lawsuit underscores that fact,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement to CNBC. “The White House looks forward to a swift and correct decision by the Supreme Court on this issue,” the statement said.
Last month, the president said the US was “receiving trillions of dollars” in tariffs and promised that “dividends of at least $2,000 per person (not including high-income people!) would be paid to everyone.”
