The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) has published in the Federal Register its latest round of product exclusions applicable to List 1 of the China Section 301 tariffs. List 1 imposed additional duties as of July 6, 2018, on goods imported from China and valued at $34 billion. This latest round of exclusions covers 110 specially prepared product descriptions, which cover 362 separate exclusion requests. The following is a partial, general description of the products covered under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States subheadings approved by USTR: heat exchangers; water tanks for certain boilers; certain compression-ignition engines; aircraft gas turbine compressor cases of steel and Inconel alloy; numerous types of power and water pumps and related parts and assemblies; certain compressors; propane powered forklift trucks; certain shovel loaders; parts of passenger or freight elevators; certain counterweights for industrial equipment; certain parts and assemblies for seeders or spreaders; certain check or pressure-reducing valves; certain electric AC/DC motors; furnace casings and structural components for industrial furnaces; certain capacitors; and certain contactors and rotary switches.
As noted by the USTR in past approval notices, these exclusions are available for any product that meets the description in the annex to this July 9 notice, regardless of whether the importer filed an exclusion request. Further, the scope of each exclusion is governed by the scope of the product descriptions in the annex, and not by the product descriptions set out in any particular request for an exclusion.
These product exclusions will apply as of July 6, 2018, the effective date of the $34 billion Section 301 trade action, which assessed a 25 percent tariff on these items, and will extend for one year after the July 9, 2019, publication of this notice in the Federal Register. U.S. Customs and Border Protection will shortly issue instructions on entry guidance, implementation of these exclusions and refund procedures.