Scam texts promise a $2,000 government 'tariff dividend' — or offer to recover your business's overpaid tariffs
Scam texts claim you're owed a $2,000 government tariff dividend—a fake payment program that doesn't exist. The link phishes your SSN and bank details. Businesses also face fake customs brokers charging fees to 'expedite' tariff refunds.
Also known as: tariff dividend scam, tariff rebate text scam, tariff refund fraud, customs broker impersonation scam
Already happened to you? Do this in the next few minutes
- 1 Call your bank or card's fraud line right now. Use the number on the back of your card — not any number from the message or caller. Ask them to stop or reverse the payment and freeze the account.
- 2 If you paid by gift card, wire, or an app (Zelle, Venmo, Cash App): contact that company immediately and report it as fraud. Acting fast sometimes recovers the money.
- 3 Report to the FBI at ic3.gov and the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov. The sooner, the better.
What to do right now
- 1 Delete any unsolicited text or email about a tariff payment or tariff dividend — no such program has been enacted
- 2 If you clicked a link and entered personal or financial information, call your bank immediately and place a fraud alert with the three credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, TransUnion)
- 3 Businesses seeking legitimate tariff refunds should use only the official CBP portal at cbp.gov — CBP does not charge processing fees and does not contact businesses by unsolicited email
- 4 Verify any customs broker through the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association at ncbfaa.org before paying any fees
- 5 Report to the FTC at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov and the FBI's IC3 at https://www.ic3.gov.
Red flags
- ⚠ The government does not contact you by text or unsolicited email about payments — government checks arrive by mail
- ⚠ No $2,000 tariff dividend program has been enacted; any text or email claiming it is active is a scam
- ⚠ The link goes to a non-.gov domain that asks for your SSN, bank account, or debit card number
- ⚠ A 'customs consultant' contacts your business out of the blue and knows your approximate tariff exposure — they got this from public trade records
- ⚠ Any 'expediting fee' or 'processing fee' to release a government payment is a hallmark of fraud
- ⚠ Urgency framing: 'You have 48 hours to claim your dividend or lose it'
Two separate scams exploit tariff confusion:
Consumer side: Scammers send texts and emails claiming you have been approved for a $2,000 “tariff dividend” — a payment supposedly funded by U.S. tariff revenue. No such program has been enacted. The link leads to a phishing page that harvests your Social Security number and banking details. Merely clicking may also install credential-stealing malware.
Business side: As U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) began processing legitimate IEEPA tariff refunds in spring 2026, fraudsters posing as customs consultants or brokers contacted small importers by email, phone, and LinkedIn offering to “expedite” the process for an upfront fee — then disappeared.
The real CBP processes refunds through its official ACE portal at cbp.gov, charges no fees, and will never contact your business by unsolicited email requesting banking credentials.