March 6th, nintendo has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government challenging the Trump administration's tariffs on goods from various countries the gaming giant trades with, including China and Mexico. Nintendo said it filed suit after the Supreme Court struck down Trump's tariffs to collect any refunds the government owes it “with interest” under the court's ruling.
In 2025, following US President Donald Trump's second term in office, the US government imposed tariffs on goods imported from various countries. Therefore, the cost of the collected tariffs was passed on to consumers across the country. In April 2025, the U.S. government's tariff rate on China reached 145%, causing an overall increase in prices of food, electronics, and other goods. The Trump administration cited the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to justify the tariffs. As a result, Nintendo increased the prices of Switch 2 controllers and accessories, but the Switch 2 console still maintained its launch MSRP of $449.
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Nintendo sues U.S. government over Trump tariffs
After the U.S. Supreme Court struck down most of the Trump administration's tariffs in a 6-3 vote on February 20, Trump imposed sweeping global 10% tariffs through an executive order lasting up to 150 days. Now, Nintendo has taken the initiative to recover the tariffs it paid before the Supreme Court ruling. According to the lawsuit filed at the U.S. International Trade Court, Nintendo names Trump administration officials including Scott Bessent, Kristi Noem, Rodney Scott, Jamison Grier, and Secretary Howard Lutnick as key defendants. The lawsuit states that Nintendo wants to collect refunds “plus interest” for duties paid after February 2025.
The lawsuit did not disclose the amount of the refund, but said Nintendo was “harmed by its IEEPA obligations” and that a judgment against the company would cause “immediate and irreparable harm” to Nintendo's bottom line. Nintendo says tariffs imposed by the Trump administration have resulted in more than $200 billion in imports being collected globally. According to Reuters, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said it would activate the refund system within the next 45 days.
Nintendo's legal team is better known for fighting piracy, but Nintendo's latest lawsuit is consistent with lawsuits previously filed against the Trump administration. According to the Associated Press on February 24, more than 1,000 global companies, including FedEx and Costco, are filing a lawsuit against the Trump administration to receive a refund of tariffs paid starting in February 2025. It remains to be seen how each lawsuit will be handled.
Nintendo's troubles aren't over yet
Nintendo's tariff lawsuit is only the second clash the Trump administration has had with Nintendo and its partners in the first week of March. On March 5, the White House posted a photo using the following font on social media. Pokemon Pokopia. The message ‘Make America Great Again’ was used as a slogan for the Trump administration and policies. However, the Pokémon Company said on March 6 that it was not involved in the White House's social media posts and did not authorize the Trump administration to use them. pokemon IP for political purposes. “Our mission is to bring the world together, and that mission has nothing to do with political views or agendas,” the company said.
However, Nintendo is still looming over a possible Switch 2 price hike in 2026. The ongoing global DRAM shortage crisis is causing prices of RAM kits and solid-state drives (SSDs) to skyrocket around the world. While companies like Sony and Microsoft are considering potential price changes, Nintendo says it is keeping an eye on the global DRAM crisis. Although Nintendo has stated that it is currently unaffected by DRAM price increases, the RAM crisis could still impact the company's bottom line in the coming months. As of this writing, the price of the Nintendo Switch 2 remains at its launch date MSRP of $449.99 (excluding 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
- solve
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1080p (portable) / 4K (docked)
- HDR support
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yes
Source: Aftermath
