The information provided below is for guidance only and not to be considered legal advice. If you have any questions or require assistance, please contact your ST&R professional or via this email.
Background on Section 301 China Tariffs
A Section 301 investigation in 2018 determined that China’s acts, policies, and practices related to technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation are unreasonable and discriminatory. As a result, in 2019 the U.S. imposed additoinal tariffs ranging from 7.5% to 25% on approximately $370 billion worth of imports from China across four lists (lists 1-4A).
Subsequently, the President conducted the statutory "review of necessity" after the tariffs had been in place for four years. That review resulted in further tariff increases of up to 100% on certain products. The four-year review also provides for some exclusions from the tariffs for certain solar panel machinery and the possibility of an exclusion for some machinery classified in Chapters 84 and 85 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule. Additional products are being considered for further tariff increases.
- List 1: 25% additional tariff on $34 billion of imports, effective July 19, 2018
- List 2: 25% additional tariff on $16 billion of imports, effective August 23, 2018
- List 3: 25% additional tariff on $200 billion of imports (increased from 10%), effective May 10, 2019
- Lists 4A: 7.5% additional tariff on $120 billion of imports, effective February 14, 2020 (there is no additional tariff on goods on list 4B)
- Four-Year Review: additional tariffs ranging from 25% - 100% effective September 27, 2024, January 1, 2025, and January 1, 2026, variously.
Latest Actions
Four-Year Review
On September 23, 2024, USTR announced they are accepting comments from Sept. 23 to Oct. 22 on a proposal to increase Section 301 tariffs on 5 HTS numbers for certain imports from China. See more details here.
On September 13, 2024, USTR announced final action to increase tariffs for goods entered or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption on or after September 27, 2024. Read more in Trade Report and listen in our TMIT podcast.
On May 14, 2024, USTR released its mandatory four-year review of these tariffs. In connection with that review, USTR published a Federal Register notice soliciting comments on proposals to:
- add or increase tariffs for certain products;
- establish an exclusion process by which interested parties may request that specific machinery used in domestic manufacturing be excluded from the tariffs through May 31, 2025; and
- grant 19 temporary exclusions for specific solar manufacturing equipment, ostensibly through May 31, 2025.
Click here for access to ST&R spreadsheets listing:
Exclusions
Previous Exclusions: On May 30, 2024, USTR issued a Federal Register notice extending 429 product-specific exclusions through June 14, 2024. However, USTR only continued the exclusions for 164 of those products beyond that date and through May 31, 2025. On August 6, 2024, USTR issued a Federal Register notice amending the HTSUS of two extended exclusions due to changes to HTSUS statistical reporting categories.
New Exclusion Process: On May 31, 2024, USTR issued a Federal Register notice setting out the proposed information it will seek in a new exclusion process for machinery classified in HTS Chapters 84 and 85 that is imported from China for manufacturing in the U.S. On August 15, 2024, USTR issued an updated Federal Register notice about this information. Comments were due September 16, 2024.
On September 13, 2024, USTR announced they expect to publish soon procedures by which interested parties may request that this machinery be temporarily excluded from the Section 301 tariffs.
Solar Manufacturing Equipment Exclusions: On September 13, 2024, USTR announced they have granted 14 tariff exclusions for specific solar manufacturing equipment, effective from Jan. 1, 2024, through May 31, 2025. Five proposed exclusions for solar manufacturing equipment for modules have been omitted.
Additional Resources
- ST&R spreadsheets listing all tariffed and excluded items are no longer available. Visit USITC's tariff page for an HTS search and tariff database.
ST&R has extensive experience assisting companies with seeking exclusions as well as mitigating the impact of the Section 301 tariffs through tariff classification, tariff engineering, first sale, and other methods. Contact us for assistance.