- - When will the $2,000 tariff checks go out? Trump's latest answer

Kinsey Crowley, USA TODAYJanuary 13, 2026 at 4:25 PM

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President Donald Trump spoke again about $2,000 tariff rebate checks, though their funding and legality remain questionable.

Pressed by reporters at The New York Times on when Americans would get the checks he has floated over the last several months, Trump mentioned the $1,776 "warrior dividends" sent to the military for the holidays.

"The tariff money is so substantial. That’s coming in, that I’ll be able to do $2,000 sometime. I would say toward the end of the year," he told the Times in an exclusive sit-down on Jan. 7. The transcript of that conversation was published Jan. 11.

But if the tariff rebate checks are distributed on the same criteria as COVID stimulus checks, a single round is estimated to cost as much as $600 billion, though tariff revenue is only projected to generate about $300 billion a year. That's if the U.S. Supreme Court does not rule against Trump's sweeping global tariffs.

'WE'RE SCREWED': Trump warns of crisis if SCOTUS rules against tariffs

'Don't you need Congress to help you with that?'

Asked by the Times whether Trump needed Congressional action to send the checks, Trump seemed to think not.

"No, I don’t believe we do. We have it coming in from other sources," he said.

But the power of the purse remains with Congress. The stimulus checks sent out during the pandemic were passed by Congress and then signed by Trump, for example.

The "warrior dividends" Trump mentioned when asked about the tariff rebate checks were not from tariff revenue, but covered by military housing funds that Congress allocated to the Defense Department in Trump's sprawling "One Big Beautiful Bill" passed last summer.

White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett likewise told CBS News' "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" on Dec. 21 that the president would "bring forth a proposal to Congress" about dividend checks in 2026, drawing funding from sources beyond tariffs.

"We get taxes, we get tariffs, we get revenue from lots of places, and then Congress decides how to spend those monies," he told Brennan. "That's an appropriation. And so this would have to be money that would be an appropriation."

Tariff rebate check idea previously introduced in Congress

Though it may need Congressional help, Congress has not moved on a similar proposal.

In July, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, introduced the American Worker Rebate Act. It would give at least $600 to qualifying individuals out of the revenue earned by tariffs.

It was introduced shortly after Trump had signaled support for the idea in July, telling reporters, "we're thinking about a rebate," but said he was prioritizing paying down the national debt.

Hawley's bill was referred to the Committee on Finance, where it received no further action.

Supreme Court to decide if Trump admin needs to return tariff money

In November, the Supreme Court heard arguments about whether the president can impose sweeping tariffs on most imports. Lower courts found that Trump overstepped when he invoked a 1977 law meant for emergencies to impose broad tariffs.

If the high court rules against the president, the government could be asked to refund some of the tariff revenue already collected. The opinion could come as early as Jan. 14.

"If the Supreme Court rules against the United States of America on this National Security bonanza, WE’RE SCREWED!" Trump posted Jan. 12 on Truth Social, saying the U.S. would need to refund "many Hundreds of Billion of Dollars" in revenue collected from the tariffs and more for "payback" in private investments.

Can the U.S. afford to give out $2,000 tariff rebate checks?

In 2025, the federal government collected about $200 billion in additional tariff revenue due to Trump's widespread tariffs.

The Times reporters asked Trump if the tariffs would cover the rebate check costs, given Trump has also said the tariff revenue would go to deficit reduction and defense.

"We also have tremendous growth in the country," Trump replied, according to the transcript. "We have tariff revenue, which is tremendous."

The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that seeks to educate the public on issues of fiscal policy impact, found in a November analysis that a $2,000 dividend will cost about $600 billion if it is designed like the COVID stimulus checks. Tariffs are expected to bring in about $300 billion in revenue per year, meaning a yearly dividend could be twice as expensive as tariffs.

Contributing: Joey Garrison, Mary Walrath-Holdridge, Mike Snider, Michelle Del Rey, Maureen Groppe, Bart Jansen, Aysha Bagchi, Francesca Chambers, USA TODAY

Kinsey Crowley is the Trump Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at [email protected]. Follow her on X (Twitter), Bluesky and TikTok.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Will you get $2,000 tariff check soon? What Trump told New York Times

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