Section 301 tariffs are extra US import duties on goods from China, on top of the normal tariff. The US Trade Representative imposed them starting in 2018 under the Trade Act of 1974, after finding that China's technology-transfer and intellectual-property practices harmed US companies. Most affected goods carry an added 25 percent (Lists 1, 2 and 3) or 7.5 percent (List 4A), and a 2024 review pushed strategic sectors such as electric vehicles, solar cells and batteries much higher. The rate stacks on top of the base duty for your HTS code.
If you import from China, this is usually the biggest number on the entry, and it is easy to miss because it does not appear next to the base rate in a simple lookup. Here is how the lists work, how to check whether your product is hit, and how the extra duty stacks up.
What Section 301 actually is
Section 301 is a provision of the Trade Act of 1974 that lets the US Trade Representative respond to unfair foreign trade practices. After a 2017 to 2018 investigation into China's handling of US intellectual property, the USTR put additional duties on thousands of Chinese-origin product categories, rolled out in four waves the trade world calls Lists 1 through 4. These duties are separate from, and add to, the regular Most Favored Nation duty that every importer pays under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule. A product with a 2.5 percent base rate that also sits on List 3 is taxed at 2.5 percent plus 25 percent, not 25 percent instead of 2.5.
The four lists and their rates
The additional rate depends on which list your product landed on, which in turn depends on its 8-digit HTS subheading. These are the current baseline rates:
| List | Took effect | Added rate | Typical goods |
|---|---|---|---|
| List 1 | July 2018 | 25% | Machinery, industrial and tech inputs |
| List 2 | August 2018 | 25% | Chemicals, plastics, semiconductors |
| List 3 | Sept 2018 (raised to 25% in 2019) | 25% | Furniture, auto parts, many consumer goods |
| List 4A | Sept 2019 (cut to 7.5% in 2020) | 7.5% | Apparel, footwear, electronics, household items |
A fifth tranche, List 4B, was scheduled but never took effect. On top of these baselines, the USTR's four-year statutory review, completed in 2024, raised rates on strategic sectors: electric vehicles to 100 percent, solar cells to 50 percent, EV lithium-ion batteries to 25 percent, semiconductors to 50 percent, and ship-to-shore cranes, syringes and certain medical products to steep new levels, phased in through 2025 and 2026. Rates and product coverage change, so treat any list as a starting point and confirm your exact line against the current HTSUS and USTR notices before you file.
How to check if your product has a Section 301 tariff
Start from the code, not the product name. Find the 10-digit HTS number for your item, then check whether its 8-digit subheading appears on a Section 301 list. In the official Harmonized Tariff Schedule, goods subject to the extra duty carry a reference to a Chapter 99 heading (the 9903.88 series) that spells out the additional rate. In practice the workflow is: classify the product, note the base duty, then look up whether a 9903.88 line applies for China-origin goods.
The step that trips people up is the classification itself, because the list is keyed to the subheading, not to a plain-English description. Get the HTS code wrong and you can either miss a 25 percent charge that CBP later bills you for, or overpay on a code that was never on the list. Describe your product on the live classifier to pin down the subheading first, then confirm the 301 status and the base rate for that exact line. Our import duty calculator is built to show the base duty and the added tariff together so the China surcharge is not a surprise.
How the duty stacks: a worked example
Say you import wooden bedroom furniture from China with a customs value of 20,000 dollars. The base HTS duty is zero for many furniture lines, which makes it tempting to assume the shipment is duty-free. But furniture sits on List 3, so a 25 percent Section 301 duty applies: 5,000 dollars on this one entry. Add the merchandise processing fee and any freight, and the landed cost is far above the sticker price of the goods. The lesson repeats across categories: the base rate tells you almost nothing about the real cost of importing from China until you check the 301 status.
Because that surcharge is real cash owed the moment the entry clears, build it into the price you quote and the money you set aside for suppliers and your customs broker. If those bills pile up, it helps to automate the accounts payable side so nothing slips past a due date while you are focused on landed cost.
Ways importers legally reduce Section 301 exposure
There is no trick that makes the tariff vanish, but several legitimate levers exist. Exclusions: the USTR periodically grants product exclusions that suspend the extra duty for specific codes, so check whether an active exclusion covers your line. Country of origin: the tariff applies to Chinese-origin goods, so sourcing the same product from a country without a Section 301 action changes the math (origin is about substantial transformation, not just the shipping point, so document it properly). First sale valuation and correct classification also matter, because both change the base the tariff is calculated on. None of these are shortcuts; they are compliance decisions that need real support. Misdeclaring origin to dodge the duty is customs fraud, not planning.
Frequently asked questions
What are Section 301 tariffs?
Section 301 tariffs are additional US import duties on goods from China, imposed by the US Trade Representative under the Trade Act of 1974 after a 2018 investigation into China's intellectual-property practices. They add to the normal HTS duty rather than replacing it. Most covered goods carry an extra 7.5 or 25 percent, and some strategic sectors carry much higher rates after the 2024 review.
How do I know if my product is subject to Section 301?
Find the product's 10-digit HTS code, then check whether its 8-digit subheading is on a Section 301 list. In the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, covered goods reference a Chapter 99 heading in the 9903.88 series that states the added rate for China-origin items. Classify the product accurately first, because the tariff is keyed to the code, not the description.
Do Section 301 tariffs stack on top of the regular duty?
Yes. The Section 301 duty is added to the base Most Favored Nation duty for your HTS code, not substituted for it. A product with a 3 percent base rate that also sits on a 25 percent list is charged 28 percent in total. Any antidumping or countervailing duties would stack on top of that as well.
Are Section 301 tariffs still in effect in 2026?
Yes. The lists remain in force, and a US appeals court upheld the legal basis for Lists 3 and 4A in 2025. The 2024 four-year review kept the tariffs and raised rates on strategic sectors. Specific rates, exclusions and coverage change over time, so verify your exact code against current USTR notices and the HTSUS before filing.
The whole calculation starts with a correct code. Classify your product on the live classifier to get the HTS line and its base duty, run the numbers with the import duty calculator, and check the current rates against the full Section 301 tariff list by product. You can also see how the extra tariff hits specific categories in our guides to HS codes for auto parts and HS codes for electronics.