US tariffs on China: the 2026 duty stack

What is the current tariff on Chinese goods?

There is no single US tariff rate on Chinese goods. As of October 2026, a product of China pays a stack of duties: the ordinary rate for its tariff line, plus one or more additional duties under Section 301 or Section 232, and the total depends on the product's 10-digit classification in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS).

For most consumer and industrial goods that are not covered by Section 232, the structure is the same: the MFN rate, plus a Section 301 list duty of 25% (Lists 1, 2 and 3) or 7.5% (List 4A), plus the 12.5% Section 301 "forced-labor" duty that took effect on 24 July 2026, plus any higher product-specific Section 301 rate set in the 2024 four-year review. MFN (most-favored-nation, the "general" column 1 rate in the HTSUS) varies line by line; China has normal trade relations with the United States, so column 1 general is its base rate. As simple arithmetic on those published rates, a List 3 product with a free MFN rate carries 37.5 percentage points of additional duty; a List 4A product with a free MFN rate carries 20.

The figures on this page come from HTSUS 2026 Revision 22, Chapter 99, the USTR forced-labor final notice of 23 July 2026, and the Supreme Court's IEEPA opinion of 20 February 2026. Chapter 99 is the part of the tariff schedule that holds temporary and additional duties; each one has an eight-digit heading beginning 9903 that the entry filer reports alongside the product's normal classification. US tariff law changed every few weeks in 2025 and 2026. Rates on this page are dated for that reason, and a licensed customs broker should confirm the duty on any specific entry on its date of entry.

The tariff stack as of October 2026

The table sets out each layer that can apply to a Chinese-origin product, the instrument behind it, and its Chapter 99 heading. A product rarely carries every layer; which ones apply is decided by its HTS line.

The four-year-review rates are the ones most often missed. As of October 2026, under HTSUS Chapter 99 U.S. note 31, they include electric vehicles at +100% (9903.91.03), EV lithium-ion batteries at +25% (from 27 September 2024), solar cells at +50%, listed semiconductors in headings 8541 and 8542 plus polysilicon and wafers at +50% (from 1 January 2025), tungsten products at +25% (from 1 January 2025), non-EV lithium-ion batteries at +25% (from 1 January 2026), medical gloves at +100% (from 1 January 2026) and ship-to-shore cranes at +25%.

How the layers combine

Each Chapter 99 note states that its duty is "in addition to" the general rate (HTSUS Ch. 99 U.S. notes 20, 31 and 52), and antidumping and countervailing duties apply on top of everything. Three interactions decide most real entries.

• The forced-labor duty is cumulative with the older Section 301 lists. HTS note 52(a) says goods under headings 9903.05.20–9903.05.84 "shall also be subject to any additional duty provided for in this subchapter." The sources do not say this the same way: USTR's notice of 23 July 2026 and CBP's implementing message do not state the stacking rule expressly, while the HTS note does. The HTS text is the operative schedule, and it makes the 12.5% an extra layer, not a replacement.
• Section 232 goods are carved out of the forced-labor duty. Heading 9903.05.90 exempts articles of steel, aluminum and copper and their derivatives, passenger vehicles and light trucks and parts, and other Section 232 goods. Civil aircraft, pharmaceutical-use articles and a list of agricultural and natural-resource lines are also exempt.
• Section 301 list duties generally still apply to Section 232 goods. The 232 notes (for example, notes 37 and 39) state that other subchapter III and IV duties "shall be imposed in addition." A Chinese electric vehicle therefore carries the 100% four-year-review duty and the 25% Section 232 auto duty on top of MFN. Whether a given 232 product also carries a 301 list duty should be confirmed line by line.

Duties are assessed on customs value, normally the transaction value. Since 6 April 2026, the Section 232 metals duties apply to the full customs value of covered articles regardless of metal content (Proclamation 11021, clause 1), not only to the value of the metal.

Origin decides whether the stack applies at all. A good is a "product of China" if it was made or last substantially transformed there. Shipping it through Vietnam or Malaysia, or relabeling it in a third country, does not change its origin.

What is no longer in the stack

Two layers that dominated 2025 rate tables are gone, and a third that replaced them has expired.

IEEPA tariffs, ended 24 February 2026

The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) was the basis for the 2025 "fentanyl" duty on China and Hong Kong (EO 14195, 10% from 4 February 2025; 20% from 4 March 2025 under EO 14228; cut to 10% from 10 November 2025 under EO 14357) and the "reciprocal" duty (EO 14257). The reciprocal rate on China was raised twice in April 2025, producing the often-quoted 145% combined figure, then cut to 10% from 14 May 2025 (EO 14298) and held at 10% under EO 14358. Immediately before the ruling, the net IEEPA layer on China was 20%.

On 20 February 2026 the Supreme Court held, 6–3, in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump that "IEEPA does not authorize the President to impose tariffs." EO 14389 terminated the IEEPA tariffs that day, and CBP stopped collecting them on goods entered on or after 12:00 a.m. ET 24 February 2026 (CSMS #67834313). The ruling did not touch Section 301 or Section 232 duties, and refunds apply only to IEEPA duties.

Section 122 surcharge, ended July 2026

A 10% balance-of-payments surcharge under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 (Proclamation 11012, 91 FR 9339) applied from 24 February 2026 for the statutory 150 days. The HTSUS compiler's note says headings 9903.03.01–9903.03.11 "expired at the close of July 23, 2026"; the forced-labor Section 301 duty took effect at 12:01 a.m. ET on 24 July. One secondary source, China Briefing, described a 15% rate as announced without a formal order; the proclamation text says 10%, and 10% is the rate that was legally imposed.

What the stack has done to imports

US Census Bureau data show the cumulative effect. Goods imports from China fell from $538.5 billion in 2018 to $308.7 billion in 2025, and China's share of total US goods imports fell from 21.2% in 2018 to 9.0% in 2025 and 7.5% for January–August 2026. Those are Census-basis, nominal, goods-only figures; the share is computed from two Census tables, 2026 is a partial year, and the data do not capture goods that moved to third countries or were transshipped.

The headline rates also overstate what importers paid on average. Kearney's 2026 Reshoring Index estimates the 2025 effective US tariff rate on mainland China (duties collected divided by customs value) at 27–30%, against an announced peak of 145%. That is a calendar-2025 estimate that includes IEEPA layers no longer collected, and it varies widely by product category; it is not a current rate.

Dates that could change the stack

Several actions were open or scheduled as of late October 2026. Any of them can change the duty on a forward order.

• 10 November 2026: the 178 Section 301 product exclusions that USTR extended on 26 November 2025 expire. No further extension had been confirmed as of the research date.
• 10 November 2026: the one-year suspension of the Section 301 maritime action ends. The HTSUS already carries 100% headings for Chinese intermodal chassis (9903.91.12) and ship-to-shore gantry cranes (9903.91.14) for entries on or after that date. On 26 October 2026 USTR proposed extending the suspension through 9 January 2027 (91 FR 67388); that was a proposal, not a final notice, as of 30 October.
• Pending Section 301 actions: the structural excess-capacity investigation of 16 economies including China (opened 11 March 2026), the Phase One compliance investigation (opened 24 October 2025) and the second four-year review of the China action (opened 6 May 2026). Press reports of a planned excess-capacity rate for China have not been confirmed in a USTR notice.
• 4 December 2026: the Section 232 polysilicon action (Proclamation 11052) takes effect, with an additional 15% duty and minimum import prices.
• 1 January 2027: scheduled Section 232 increases on upholstered wooden furniture and on kitchen cabinets and vanities, deferred from 1 January 2026 by Proclamation 11000.
• 23 June 2027: the semiconductor Section 301 rate under 9903.91.05 "shall be increased," with the amount to be announced by USTR at least 30 days before (HTS note 31(f)(ii)).

A court challenge to the forced-labor Section 301 duty has been reported in secondary sources; its status was not confirmed in a primary source as of October 2026.

How to work out the duty on one product

The stack is applied line by line, so the only reliable method is to build it for the specific product on the specific entry date.

• Classify the product to its 10-digit HTSUS line. The supplier's Chinese HS code is not a substitute; the US line controls scope.
• Confirm origin under the substantial-transformation test, not the port of shipment.
• Check Chapter 99 U.S. note 20 for the Section 301 list and note 31 for any four-year-review rate on that line.
• Check for an exclusion and its expiry date. Exclusions are written to product descriptions that are often narrower than an HTS line.
• Check note 52 for forced-labor exemptions, and the Section 232 notes for metals, autos, timber and other covered goods.
• Check for antidumping or countervailing duty orders on the product from China.

The common errors are quoting a single "China rate," using 2025 tables that still show "30%" or "145%," and treating the 12.5% as a replacement for the old lists. Because rates move and the stack is product-specific, a licensed customs broker should confirm the Chapter 99 lines on any entry before an order is costed.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• Office of the U.S. Trade Representative — Notice of Actions in Section 301 Investigations of Acts, Policies, and Practices of Various Economies Rela… (2026, PDF)
• Supreme Court of the United States — Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump, 607 U.S. ___ (2026), slip opinion (2026, PDF)
• U.S. Census Bureau — Trade in Goods with China (country page) and Trade in Goods with World (2026, HTML-official)
• Executive Office of the President / Federal Register — Imposing a Temporary Import Surcharge To Address Fundamental International Payments Problems … (2026, HTML-official)
• Office of the US Trade Representative (Federal Register) — Request for Comments on Further Suspension of Section 301 Action: China's Targeting of th… (2026, HTML-official)
• Executive Office of the President / Federal Register — Proclamation 11021, Strengthening Actions Taken To Adjust Imports of Aluminum, Steel, and Cop… (2026, PDF)
• hts.usitc.gov/
• ustr.gov/about/policy-offices/press-office/press-releases/2025/november/ustr…