6th of March, Nintendo The Trump administration has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government over tariffs on goods from countries including China and Mexico that trade with the gaming giant. Nintendo said that, since the Supreme Court struck down Trump's tariffs, it was suing to collect any refunds owed by the government “plus interest” under the court's ruling.
After the return of US President Donald Trump in 2025, the US government imposed taxes on goods from different countries. Therefore, the cost of collection charges was passed on to consumers across the country. In April 2025, the tariff rate imposed by the US government against China was as high as 145%, causing the price of food, electronics and other goods to rise across the board. The Trump administration cited the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) as justification for the tariffs. As a result, Nintendo raised the prices of Switch 2 controllers and accessories, although the Switch 2 console still kept its starting MSRP of $449.
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Nintendo is suing the US government over Trump's tariffs
After the US Supreme Court struck down most of the Trump administration's tariffs by a 6-3 vote in a February 20 decision, Trump issued a 10% global tariff through an executive order that will last for a maximum of 150 days. Now Nintendo has moved to refund the fees paid before the Supreme Court order. According to the lawsuit filed in the US Court of International Trade, Nintendo lists members of the Trump administration as the main defendants, including Secretaries Scott Besant, Kristi Noem, Rodney Scott, Jamison Greer and Howard Lutnick. The lawsuit says Nintendo wants to recoup any tariff fees paid since February 2025, “with interest.”
Although the refund amount was not disclosed in the lawsuit, Nintendo said it “suffered injury due to IEEPA duties” and that any judgment against the company would cause “imminent and irreparable harm” to Nintendo's bottom line. Nintendo said the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration have collected more than $200 billion in imports from around the world. According to Reuters, the US Customs and Border Protection agency said the return system would be activated within the next 45 days.
While Nintendo's legal team is well-known for fighting piracy, the gaming giant's latest lawsuit is similar to a lawsuit previously filed against the Trump administration. According to a February 24 AP report, more than 1,000 global companies such as FedEx and Costco are suing the Trump administration for refunds of tariff duties paid through February 2025. It remains to be seen how each case will be handled.
Nintendo's issues are far from over
Nintendo's tariff case is only the second run-in the Trump administration has had with Nintendo and its partners in the first full week of March. On March 5, the White House posted a picture on social media using the Ko font Pokemon Pokopia. The message of “Make America Great Again” has been used as a slogan for the Trump administration and its policies. However, the Pokemon Company said on March 6 that it was not involved in the White House's social media post, and had not authorized the Trump administration to use it. Pokemon IP for any political purpose. “Our mission is to bring the world together, and that mission is not affiliated with any political viewpoint or agenda,” the company said.
However, Nintendo faces the growing possibility of a Switch 2 price hike in 2026. The ongoing global DRAM shortage crisis is driving up the prices of RAM kits and solid-state drives (SSDs) worldwide. While companies like Sony and Microsoft are mulling possible price changes, Nintendo said it is keeping an eye on the global DRAM crisis. Although Nintendo said it is not currently affected by DRAM price increases, the RAM crisis could still affect the company's bottom line in the coming months. As of this writing, the price of the Nintendo Switch 2 remained at its launch day MSRP of $449.99 before tax.
- brand
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Nintendo
- Original release date
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June 5, 2025
- Original MSRP (USD)
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$449.99
- operating system
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Ownership
- resolve
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1080p (handheld) / 4K (docked)
- HDR support
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yes
Source: Later
