About the tariffs
Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 gives USTR authority to act against foreign practices that "burden or restrict" U.S. commerce. In 2026, USTR opened a new Section 301 track focused on forced-labor enforcement in 60 trading partners. The theory: when a country fails to prohibit — or fails to effectively enforce a prohibition on — imports made with forced labor, its exports gain an artificial cost advantage.
USTR finalized the action on July 23, 2026, and the duties took effect at 12:01 a.m. ET on July 24, 2026 (Federal Register notice).
These duties are distinct from — but closely related to — the pre-existing Section 301 China tariffs (Lists 1–4A). Only the new Section 301 forced-labor duties are additional tariffs stacked on top of the older regime.
Rate tiers
USTR grouped the 60 covered economies into four tiers based on each country's forced-labor enforcement posture.
| Tier↕ | Rate↕ | Countries↕ |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 (17 economies) | 10% flat additive | Argentina, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Canada, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Malaysia, Mexico, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago, United Kingdom |
| Tier 2 (2 economies) | 10% net of MFN (combined MFN + Section 301 caps at 10%) | European Union, Taiwan |
| Tier 3 (3 economies) | 12.5% net of MFN (combined MFN + Section 301 caps at 12.5%) | Japan, South Korea, Switzerland |
| Tier 4 (38 economies) | 12.5% flat additive | Algeria, Angola, Australia, Bahamas, Bahrain, Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Guyana, Hong Kong, Iraq, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Libya, Morocco, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Peru, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Thailand, Türkiye, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Venezuela, Vietnam |
Effective date
The tariffs took effect at 12:01 a.m. ET on Friday, July 24, 2026. Goods loaded aboard the vessel of export before that time and entered for consumption before 12:01 a.m. ET on July 28, 2026 qualify for a narrow in-transit exception. Loading date and vessel must be documented at entry.
Exemptions
Three sets of exemptions apply.
Universal exemptions (Annex I, Part A) apply to imports from all 60 economies:
- Goods qualifying under USMCA (Canada, Mexico), regardless of whether the "S" or "S+" preference indicator appears on the tariff line
- CAFTA-DR duty-free textiles and apparel
- U.S.–Jordan FTA textiles, apparel, and travel goods entered duty-free
- Products already subject to Section 232 tariffs (steel, aluminum, copper, timber, semiconductors, autos, and auto parts)
- Civil aircraft and qualifying parts
- Enumerated pharmaceutical articles (a patented-pharmaceutical carve-out took effect July 31, 2026)
- Informational materials, humanitarian donations, and accompanied personal baggage
- Most Chapter 98 entries — except 9802.00.40, .50, .60, and 9802.00.80, where the duty applies only to the value of foreign processing or assembly less U.S.-origin content
- ~863 tariff codes (of ~2,120 in the annex) exempt in their entirety
Country-specific exemptions (Annex I, Parts B–O) add HTS-specific relief for 13 economies whose partial cooperation warranted it: United Kingdom, European Union, Switzerland, Malaysia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Egypt, Jordan, Cambodia, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Taiwan, and Ecuador.
Free trade agreements
Only three FTAs are specifically exempted from the new duty:
- USMCA: USMCA-qualifying goods from Canada and Mexico are fully exempt. This is broader than ordinary USMCA preference — the exemption applies even where the "S"/"S+" indicator does not appear on the specific tariff line. Non-qualifying Canadian and Mexican goods still face the 10% Tier 1 duty, so USMCA qualification is now the difference between 0% and 10% additional duty.
- CAFTA-DR: Duty-free textiles and apparel from Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua are exempt. Non-textile CAFTA-DR goods follow the country's tier assignment.
- U.S.–Jordan FTA: Duty-free textiles, apparel, and travel goods are exempt. Other Jordanian goods face the 10% Tier 1 duty.
No other FTA (KORUS, U.S.–Israel, U.S.–Colombia, U.S.–Peru, U.S.–Panama, U.S.–Chile, U.S.–Singapore, U.S.–Australia, U.S.–Bahrain, U.S.–Morocco, U.S.–Oman) is separately exempted. FTA preference still lowers the MFN rate on covered goods, but the Section 301 duty stacks on top per the origin country's tier.
Tariff stacking
The new duty stacks with:
- MFN (Column 1) rate
- Existing Section 301 China duties (Lists 1–4A) — for Chinese-origin goods specifically, the new 12.5% Tier 4 duty is additional to both the existing China 301 rate (List 1–4A) and MFN
- Antidumping and countervailing duties (AD/CVD)
The new duty does not apply to goods already covered by Section 232 (see the covered categories under Exemptions above). Under the Executive Order 14289 stacking hierarchy, Section 232 duties on covered products take precedence, so the Section 301 forced-labor duty is not layered on top.
Worked examples
| Scenario↕ | Duty calculation↕ |
|---|---|
| Vietnamese apparel, MFN 16.5% | 16.5% MFN + 12.5% Section 301 forced labor (Tier 4) = 29.0% |
| Chinese consumer electronics on List 3, MFN 3%, existing Section 301 China 25% | 3% MFN + 25% Section 301 China + 12.5% Section 301 forced labor = 40.5% |
| USMCA-qualifying Mexican auto part, MFN 2.5%, non-Section-232 scope | 0% (USMCA duty-free, Section 301 exempt) |
| German industrial machine, MFN 2.8% | Combined caps at 10% (Tier 2, EU): 2.8% MFN + 7.2% Section 301 = 10.0% |
| Japanese semiconductor covered by Section 232 | 25% Section 232, Section 301 forced labor exempt = 25% |
Primary sources
- USTR, Notice of Actions in Section 301 Investigations (Federal Register, July 28, 2026)
- USTR Press Release: USTR Takes Action in Forced Labor Section 301 Investigations (July 23, 2026)
- CRS, Legal Authority for Section 301 Tariffs to Address Forced Labor (LSB11460)
- CBP, Trade Remedies (Section 301, 232)
Section 301 forced-labor tariffs
New Section 301 tariffs on imports from 60 economies with inadequate forced-labor import prohibitions, effective July 24, 2026.
On July 24, 2026, a new set of Section 301 tariffs took effect on imports from 60 economies whose forced-labor import prohibitions the U.S. Trade Representative determined are absent or inadequately enforced. The additional duties range from 10% to 12.5% ad valorem and stack on top of most other applicable duties, with important exceptions for USMCA-qualifying goods, CAFTA-DR and Jordan FTA textiles, and products already covered by Section 232.
This summary reflects U.S. Trade Representative and CBP guidance as of August 2026. Rates, exemptions, and the tariff-rate quota rules for the textile mechanism are subject to change. Confirm each entry with your customs broker before filing.