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Whether you turn to Amazon to save money on essentials or enjoy cutting costs by putting popular Amazon hacks to use, you might be one of the few shoppers who could see cash back for the tariffs you paid. During Amazon's July 30 earnings call, CFO Brian Olsavsky explained that the retailer received approximately $600 million in tariff refunds during the second quarter. He also stated that Amazon expects to return some of that money to customers.
Here's the story behind Amazon's tariff refund, how the retailer plans to issue refunds to shoppers, and how to tell whether you might receive a refund.
What Olsavsky said during Amazon's earnings call
During Amazon's July 30 earnings call, Olsavsky relayed that the business was receiving a "limited" $600 million tariff refund. He explained that Amazon had purchased inventory before the tariffs went into effect, which minimized the size of the refund. Additionally, the tariffs often applied to the inventory purchased by third-party sellers, which further reduced the size of the refund that Amazon received. About 60% of Amazon sales are made by third-party sellers, meaning Amazon didn't import or pay tariffs on those specific items.
Olsavsky also outlined Amazon's plans to pass those refunds onto customers who paid higher prices for items because of those tariffs. "We've identified a limited set of circumstances where we can trace that we passed specific import charges on to customers," he said. "When we receive those refunds, we will proactively contact affected customers and automatically issue refunds to them."
Why retailers are receiving tariff refunds
In February, the Supreme Court ruled that the tariffs that President Trump imposed using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 were invalid. The Supreme Court ordered the government to refund the tariffs to the companies that imported the goods and originally paid those tariffs. So far, the government has refunded about half of the $166 billion in tariffs that companies paid.
Amazon and other retailers are applying for and receiving tariff refunds. Apple's tariff refunds may be as large as $2.2 billion, and they boosted the company's earnings. Ford expects to receive $1.3 billion in refunds, while General Motors expects to receive $500 million. Nike predicts that its tariff refunds may amount to nearly $1 billion.
Could customers receive tariff refunds from retailers
Unfortunately, customers who paid higher prices because of the tariffs won't necessarily receive refunds. For example, Apple stated that it plans to use the tariff refund to supplement its investment projects, but hasn't committed to returning any of that money to customers. Consumers put significant pressure on Amazon to issue refunds and even brought a class-action lawsuit against the retailer, alleging it charged higher prices due to tariffs. Amazon announced its decision to issue some automatic refunds after facing that pressure.
Who might receive Amazon refunds
Olsavsky stated Amazon plans to issue refunds in a "limited set of circumstances" where it's able to trace import charges to specific buyers. Amazon plans to identify which customers are eligible for refunds, and the retailer plans to "proactively contact affected customers and automatically issue refunds to them." Amazon hasn't yet provided additional details on how it plans to identify the eligible customers.
Beyond issuing refunds to those customers, Olsavsky said that Amazon plans to utilize the tariff refunds to "continue to invest in low prices for customers."
What you should do if you think you're eligible for an Amazon refund
Since the Amazon refund process is automatic, there isn't much for customers to do other than to wait and see if they hear from the company. Amazon hasn't created any claim form, portal, or application, and it sounds like the business plans to handle the entire process in-house. If you receive any notification appearing to come from Amazon that instructs you to file a claim for refunds, it is likely a scam.
If you're wondering whether you purchased a certain item from Amazon or from a third party, you may log into your Amazon account and check your order history. Click the "view order details" option, and the seller should be listed as either Amazon or as a different retailer. Amazon is issuing refunds only for certain products that were sold directly by Amazon, not by a third party.
Even so, only items subjected to tariffs may qualify, and Amazon hasn't specified which products those were. Checking your order history might help you rule out which items wouldn't qualify for a refund because they were purchased through a third party, though. Amazon also hasn't yet outlined any sort of timeline about when refunds may be issued.
Bottom line
Amazon is an outlier in committing to pass any refunds back to customers at all. Other retailers like Walmart, Costco, and Home Depot have pursued refunds. Nintendo faced a class-action lawsuit alleging that the retailer was breaking the law by not passing tariff refunds on to consumers. Nintendo said in a filing that consumers "received exactly what they bargained and paid for," arguing that the manufacturer was not legally required to issue a tariff rebate to its customers.
Most Amazon customers are unlikely to receive a refund, but for a lucky few, the refund might put extra cash in their pockets. Amazon still remains a solid option to help shoppers save money on groceries and other items.
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