Washington DC - The members-only warehouse retailer Costco has sued President Donald Trump's administration, demanding a refund for tariffs it has paid on imported goods, according to a lawsuit reviewed by AFP.

The suit, filed on Friday in the US Court of International Trade, says the tariffs are illegal. It does not specify how much reimbursement the multinational company is seeking on tariffs paid since they took effect earlier in Trump's presidency.

Costco is the largest US company to challenge the tariffs, which are a cornerstone of Trump's policy to address what he views as a chronic imbalance in US trade and to exert diplomatic pressure on other countries.

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Several businesses and Democratic-led states have filed complaints with the same court, arguing that the tariffs are unconstitutional as the power to impose them rests with Congress.

The complaints do not address tariffs targeting specific sectors like automobiles and steel.

The US Court of International Trade has ruled that tariffs imposed by Trump under emergency powers were illegal, a ruling upheld by the US Court of Appeals, but the tariffs remain in force pending a ruling from the Supreme Court.

During an early November hearing, the Supreme Court expressed some skepticism about the legality of some of the tariffs imposed by Trump.

But according to the documents filed by its lawyers, seen by AFP on Tuesday, Costco fears that even if the Supreme Court rules the tariffs illegal, it will not be reimbursed for what it has already paid to US tax authorities.

Pending the Supreme Court's decision, other companies have filed similar lawsuits to Costco, including the US subsidiary of Japanese automaker Toyota.