Tariffs & HTS
U.S. imposes forced-labor Section 301 tariffs on 60 economies
USTR imposed Section 301 tariffs on all products of 60 economies it found fail to impose and effectively enforce a ban on imports made with forced labor, for goods entered on or after 12:01 a.m. ET on July 24, 2026. The rate is 10% for a named group including Canada, Mexico, India and the United Kingdom; 10% net of MFN for the EU and Taiwan; 12.5% net of MFN for Japan, South Korea and Switzerland; and 12.5% for all others, including China.
What changed
The action follows USTR's June 2026 findings and proposal. Net of MFN means the Section 301 duty tops the MFN rate up to 10% or 12.5% and is zero where MFN is already at or above that level. Goods loaded and in transit before July 24 and entered before 12:01 a.m. on July 28, 2026 are not covered.
Exemptions include Section 232 articles, USMCA duty-free goods of Canada and Mexico, CAFTA-DR duty-free textiles and apparel, products listed in the Annexes (some only as civil aircraft articles or for pharmaceutical use) and, from July 31, 2026, patented pharmaceutical articles.
Unless exempted, the duty stacks on other Chapter 99 duties, and AD/CVD still apply. Textile TRQs for Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia and Malaysia will follow in a separate notice; until then 10% applies. USTR declined to create an exclusion process.
What an import team should check
- Confirm the origin of each product and whether the 10%, 12.5% or net-of-MFN method applies, using the new HTSUS headings 9903.05.20 to 9903.05.84.
- Check your HTS lines against Annex II Part A, any economy-specific part (B to O) and the Section 232, USMCA and CAFTA-DR exemptions before filing entries.
- Keep loading and transit documents for cargo shipped before July 24, 2026 and ask your broker whether entries made before July 28 qualify for the in-transit exception.