The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) has announced additional Section 301 tariff exclusions for certain imported Chinese products appearing on List 3. These products have been subject to Section 301 tariffs since September 24, 2018, when President Donald Trump announced additional import duties on Chinese goods with an annual trade value of approximately $200 billion. Despite the December 13, 2019 announcement of the “Phase One” trade agreement with China (see Trump and Trade Update of December 13, 2019), the 25 percent tariff on products covered under List 3 will indefinitely remain in place.
This batch of approved product exclusions covers nine 10-digit Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) subheadings in their entirety and 35 specially-prepared product descriptions covering 75 separately filed exclusion requests. The nine HTS subheadings are: 0304.72.5000; 0304.83.1015; 0304.83.1020; 0304.83.5090; 8507.20.4000; 8708.50.8500; 8708.94.7510; 8708.99.8105; and 8712.00.1520. The specially-prepared product description exclusions cover: various freeze-dried fruits; certain slats and spices; certain satin woven fabrics; certain nonwoven rug pads; certain ropes of man-made fibers; certain steel gates for confining children or pets; certain electrical boxes designed for lighting fixtures; certain multi-position aluminum ladders; types of aluminum towers intended to be mounted on boats for water sport towing purposes; various types of electronic calculators and calculating machines; certain static converters, rectifiers and rectifying apparatus; certain LED headlights and lightbars for off-road, all-terrain vehicles; various types of brake drums for motor vehicles; certain types of upholstered dining chairs; certain three- and four-legged chairs for outdoor use; various electric household chandeliers and table lamps; and certain non-electrical wall candelabras.
These product exclusions will be retroactive to September 24, 2018, and remain in effect until August 7, 2020. These exclusions apply to any product that satisfies the description in the annex of the Federal Register notice, regardless of whether the company using the exclusion filed the request. Each exclusion is governed by the scope of the HTS heading and the product description appearing in the annex of the exclusion notice; it is not governed by the product description set out in any particular exclusion request. U.S. Customs and Border Protection will soon issue instructions on entry guidance and implementation. USTR will continue to issue determinations on pending requests on a periodic basis.