President Donald Trump directed the U.S. Trade Representative to impose tariffs on goods from 60 economies, acting on findings that each has failed to prohibit or effectively enforce a ban on imports produced with forced labor. The presidential memorandum, published for the Federal Register, orders ad valorem duties of 10 percent or 12.5 percent depending on the economy, along with product exemptions and textile quotas.
The action rests on Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which authorizes the Trade Representative to respond to foreign practices that burden U.S. commerce. The Trade Representative launched investigations into the 60 economies March 12, 2026, examining whether each fails to bar goods made wholly or in part with forced labor and whether that failure is unreasonable or discriminatory. On June 2, 2026, the Trade Representative determined that the practices of every economy under review are "unreasonable and burden or restrict U.S. commerce" and are therefore actionable under Section 301(b)(1).
The list of targeted economies spans nearly every major U.S. trading partner, including China, the European Union, Canada, Mexico, Japan, India, South Korea, the United Kingdom, Brazil, and Vietnam, as well as smaller exporters across Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. Each investigation was treated as a separate proceeding tied to that economy's specific conduct.
After the June determinations, the Trade Representative proposed tariffs and invited public input. The USTR convened hearings July 7, 8, and 9, 2026, and received more than 1,600 written comments and testimony from over 100 witnesses. The Trade Representative then advised the president on final rates, exemptions, and tariff-rate quotas, telling him that certain products warranted exemption because of the needs of the U.S. economy or because tariffs on them would not meaningfully push economies to change their practices.
Under the memorandum's directives, a 10 percent tariff applies to goods from Argentina, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Canada, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Malaysia, Mexico, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, the United Kingdom, and Trinidad and Tobago. The lower rate reflects that these economies either impose but do not yet enforce a prohibition, have committed to one in an Agreement on Reciprocal Trade, or have adopted a partial regime. Goods from all other investigated economies face a 12.5 percent tariff.
For the European Union, Japan, Korea, Switzerland, and Taiwan, the memorandum sets the Section 301 duty net of the Most-Favored Nation rate, consistent with those economies' trade arrangements. For a European Union or Taiwan product, the Section 301 tariff is set so the combined MFN and Section 301 duty reaches 10 percent, and drops to zero where the MFN rate already meets or exceeds that level. For Japan, Korea, and Switzerland, the combined cap is 12.5 percent. The memorandum describes the capping as an incentive for those economies to fulfill commitments on forced-labor import bans.
The order also directs tariff-rate quotas for Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Malaysia, each with an initial three-year term. The quotas would let a set volume of textiles and apparel enter the United States free of the Section 301 tariff, tied to how much U.S. cotton and textile inputs each economy imports. The stated aim is to reduce those partners' reliance on inputs from other sources more likely to contain forced labor. The Trade Representative advised that the quotas are not yet feasible but will be by Sept. 1, 2026; until then, the applicable 10 percent tariff applies to the covered textile and apparel goods.
The memorandum exempts products listed in an annex, including raw materials whose taxation could cut off domestic supply, goods that could cause economy-wide disruptions, and items that cannot be produced in sufficient quantities in the United States or sourced elsewhere. The president wrote that he considered alternatives, including lower rates, more or fewer exemptions, omitting the quotas, and negotiating without tariffs, and determined those options would be less effective.
The order reflects changes prompted by the investigations themselves. After the Notice of Determinations published, the Trade Representative reported that Cambodia, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Sri Lanka, and Trinidad and Tobago imposed forced-labor import prohibitions, and Jordan undertook commitments in an Agreement on Reciprocal Trade. Their goods are set at the 10 percent rate to encourage enforcement.
A severability section instructs that each of the 60 tariff actions stand independently. If a court invalidates the application to one investigation, the memorandum states, the remaining tariffs continue to apply, and an invalidated exemption does not disturb the underlying duty. The memorandum also states it creates no enforceable rights against the United States and must be implemented consistent with applicable law.
Importers, retailers, and manufacturers that source from the 60 economies now face added duties across broad categories of goods, subject to the annex exemptions. The Trade Representative may modify or terminate any tariff, exemption, or quota under Section 307 of the Trade Act, leaving room for further adjustments as targeted economies respond.