In addition to normal customs duty and ADD/CVD assessments,  imported products may be subject to additional duties pursuant to  variety of trade remedy laws including:

• Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974
• Section 201 of the Trade Act of 1974
• Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962

Where applicable these duties are cumulative:

• ADD + CVD + Section 201 + Section 301 + Section 232 = total duty due

Section 301 duty requires a finding by the United States Trade Representative that the trade practices of a foreign country are unreasonable or otherwise contrary to law. Currently, $550 billion Chinese imports are subject to additional duties, ranging from 7.5% to 25% pursuant to Section 301. Coverage is based on HTSUS classifications.

Section 201 requires an affirmative finding by the USITC that certain merchandise is being imported into the United States in such increased quantities as to be a substantial cause of serious injury to the domestic industry producing an article that is like or directly competitive with the imported products. The President, after considering recommendations of the USITC, may then subject the covered merchandise to additional duty, quota, or tariff rate quota, regardless of origin. Most recently, certain solar panels and solar cells have been the subject of additional duty assessments under Section 201.

Section 232 duty requires that the President decide that importation of designated products threaten the national security of the United States.  Currently, steel products and certain derivative steel products (e.g., steel nails) are subject to a 25% additional duty.  Aluminum products are subject to a 10% duty. Coverage is based on HTSUS classifications.

Navigating these tariffs requires sophisticated experienced legal advice. GDLSK attorneys have been working with our clients to reduce the impact of these tariffs since they were first assessed in 2018. We are actively involved in litigating the legality of Section 301 tariffs before the CIT/CAFC, obtaining exclusions for products imported by our clients and providing advice with regard to strategies  to minimize and/or avoid duty assessments.