Nintendo wants its tariff money back
Nintendo wants the money it paid in tariffs back—and it’s taking the U.S. government to court to get it.
The Kyoto-based company has filed a motion with the U.S. Court of International Trade seeking to recover the money it paid for tariffs, plus interest. It’s the first major video game company to demand a refund from the government, but likely won’t be the last.
Nintendo avoided raising the price of its Switch 2 console as the Trump administration enacted duties on imports. But it did increase prices for accessories, including Joy-Con controllers and the camera and dock set, last April. The company also initially delayed preorders because of confusion over the tariffs, which may have cost it additional revenue.
“Plaintiff has suffered injury caused by the IEEPA Duties,” the filing reads. “If not remedied … [Nintendo] will suffer imminent and irreparable harm.”
(Despite the language in the court filing, Nintendo is in no danger of collapse. In its most recent earnings report, the company said net sales had nearly doubled year over year to $12.3 billion, while profits rose 51% to $2.3 billion. In the first nine months of availability, Nintendo sold 17.37 million Switch 2 hardware units.)
While Nintendo is the first gaming company to sue for the return of its tariffs, plenty of other businesses across different industries have filed similar actions. Costco, Revlon, GoPro, and Toyota, among others, are attempting to recover refunds and prevent future tariffs. Sony has not yet filed with the Court of International Trade, but that could change in the days and weeks to come. The company raised the base price of the PlayStation 5 by $50 in August, citing “challenging economic conditions” and tariffs.
Tariffs are technically imposed on the companies that import certain goods, but those costs are generally passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices. Neither Nintendo, nor most of the other companies suing to recover the tariffs they have paid, has addressed whether they would reimburse consumers. That’s not the case at Cards Against Humanity, where that gaming company is vowing to offer refunds to anyone who “overpaid” for the game due to tariffs. (FedEX also says it will refund customers.)
The U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Trump administration’s tariffs in February, ruling that the sweeping “reciprocal” tariffs Trump levied on nearly every other country were illegal. Trump quickly announced plans to impose a global 10% tariff as an alternative. He later increased that figure to 15%. (The section of the Trade Act he cited as granting that authority allows tariffs to remain in place for only 150 days.)
The Supreme Court ruling did not address the issue of refunds, but last week, a federal judge in New York ruled that companies who paid the tariffs struck down by the Supreme Court were entitled to refunds. Judge Richard Eaton of the U.S. Court of International Trade said he alone would hear cases tied to IEEPA tariffs.
The government is widely expected to appeal Eaton’s ruling, which would delay the issuance of any refunds.
In the meantime, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which would be responsible for issuing the refunds is dragging its feet. It told Judge Eaton on Friday that it could not comply with the order to refund the reciprocal tariffs.
In a court filing, the agency said its existing technology, processes, and staffing levels were insufficient to comply with the order at the moment. It said it expected to be able to follow the ruling in late April after updating its technology.
As of the last update, made on Dec. 14, 2025, CBP reported that it had collected approximately $133.5 billion in tariffs under the IEEPA authority. Refunding those, however, could cost $175 billion, according to the Penn Wharton Budget Model.