The import tax from China to the US is not one number but a stack of duties added together: a base rate from the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, Section 301 China tariffs of 7.5% to 100%, reciprocal and fentanyl-related tariffs imposed by executive order in 2025, and, for some products, Section 232 steel and aluminum duties or anti-dumping and countervailing duties on top. Combined rates on Chinese goods commonly exceed 30% of the product’s value, and since August 29, 2025, the $800 de minimis exemption no longer spares small shipments.1The White House. Suspending Duty-Free De Minimis Treatment for All Countries U.S. Customs and Border Protection collects the duties and enforces the rules at the border.2U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Trade
How the Duty Layers Add Up
Two products in the same container can carry very different total duty rates because each layer is authorized by a different law and applied independently. The layers don’t replace each other. They stack.
For Chinese goods in 2026, the layers you need to check are:
- The base HTS duty rate assigned to the product’s classification code, ranging from 0% to over 20%.
- Section 301 tariffs of 7.5% to 100% on targeted Chinese goods.
- Reciprocal and fentanyl-related IEEPA tariffs imposed by executive order in 2025.
- Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum and many derivative products.
- Anti-dumping and countervailing duties on specific products where Commerce has made a finding.
On top of the duties, formal entries owe the Merchandise Processing Fee, and ocean shipments owe the Harbor Maintenance Fee. Your actual total lands only after you identify your product’s HTS code and walk through every layer.
Base HTS Rate
Every imported product gets a ten-digit classification under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, and that classification sets the base duty rate.3Harmonized Tariff Schedule. Harmonized Tariff Schedule Raw materials tend to enter at low single-digit percentages; finished consumer goods like apparel often run 15% to 20% or more. Because China holds normal trade relations status, Chinese goods use the Column 1 General rate rather than the higher Column 2 rates.
Getting the classification right is the foundation of the whole calculation, because every other layer is applied on top of it. You can look up HTS codes through the U.S. International Trade Commission’s search tool.4U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Determining Duty Rates Misclassifying a product doesn’t just change your duty; it can trigger penalties.
Section 301 Tariffs on Chinese Goods
Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 lets the U.S. Trade Representative impose additional tariffs on Chinese goods in response to intellectual property and technology transfer practices. Four waves of Section 301 tariffs took effect between 2018 and 2020, and a four-year review completed in 2024 raised rates on targeted categories to as high as 100%, with staggered effective dates running through January 2026.5Office of the United States Trade Representative. China Section 301-Tariff Actions and Exclusion Process
Categories hit by the review’s increases include electric vehicles, semiconductors, solar cells, steel and aluminum products, and certain medical supplies. The USTR publishes the full product lists with HTS codes. Before you ship, check whether your specific ten-digit code falls under any Section 301 list and at what rate.
Reciprocal and Fentanyl-Related Tariffs
Starting in early 2025, a series of executive orders imposed additional tariffs on Chinese imports under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. These were framed first as a response to synthetic opioid precursor flows and then expanded as reciprocal trade measures. Rates changed repeatedly through the year, at one point reaching 125% before being reduced.6Federal Register. Modifying Reciprocal Tariff Rates To Reflect Discussions With the Peoples Republic of China
As of May 14, 2025, Executive Order 14298 set the reciprocal tariff on Chinese goods at 34% (down from 125%), plus a separate 10% additional duty on all articles from China. Further adjustments followed in late 2025. These IEEPA tariffs sit on top of the base HTS rate and any Section 301 duty, which is what drives combined rates on Chinese goods so far above rates from other countries.
Because these percentages have moved several times through executive action, the rate in force on the day your goods enter is what governs. Verify current rates close to the shipment date rather than trusting a figure published months earlier.
Section 232, Anti-Dumping, and Countervailing Duties
Steel and aluminum imports from China face Section 232 tariffs, originally 25% for steel and 10% for aluminum, then raised to 50% for both as of June 2025 for most countries. The scope reaches beyond obvious steel and aluminum products into fasteners, tools, containers, and other derivative items that fall under the relevant HTS headings.
Certain Chinese products also carry anti-dumping duties, applied when Commerce finds the goods are sold in the U.S. below fair market value, or countervailing duties, applied to offset Chinese government subsidies.7United States International Trade Commission. Understanding Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Investigations These are product-specific and can be extreme. Some Chinese steel and furniture products carry anti-dumping rates well over 100% of value. Check whether your product is subject to any active order before you commit to a shipment; discovering these duties at the port can wipe out a deal.
Processing and Harbor Fees
Nearly every formal entry owes the Merchandise Processing Fee, charged at 0.3464% of the cargo value, with a minimum of $33.58 and a maximum of $651.50 per entry for fiscal year 2026. Manually filed entries add a $4.03 surcharge.8U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Customs User Fee – Merchandise Processing Fees
Ocean shipments, which cover most Chinese imports, also owe the Harbor Maintenance Fee at 0.125% of cargo value for commercial cargo moved through a qualifying port.9eCFR. 19 CFR 24.24 – Harbor Maintenance Fee Neither fee is large on its own, but both belong in the landed cost calculation.
The $800 De Minimis Exemption Is Gone
Before 2025, shipments valued at $800 or less could enter duty-free under 19 U.S.C. § 1321, the rule commonly called Section 321.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 U.S. Code 1321 – Administrative Exemptions Executive Order 14256, issued April 2, 2025, eliminated that treatment for goods from China and Hong Kong, replacing it with an ad valorem duty or a flat per-item charge.11The White House. Fact Sheet – President Donald J. Trump Closes De Minimis Exemptions to Combat Chinas Role in Americas Synthetic Opioid Crisis A later order then suspended de minimis for all countries entirely, effective August 29, 2025.1The White House. Suspending Duty-Free De Minimis Treatment for All Countries
Every shipment from China now faces duties regardless of value. A consumer ordering a $30 item from a Chinese marketplace will see customs charges that didn’t exist in 2024. Budget for duties on every order, no matter how small.
Goods That Can’t Be Imported at All: The UFLPA
Tariffs are one problem; a UFLPA hold is a different one. The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, in effect since June 2022, creates a rebuttable presumption that any goods produced wholly or in part in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, or by companies on the UFLPA Entity List, are made with forced labor and are prohibited from entering the United States.12U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act The goods are assumed to violate the law unless the importer proves otherwise.
The reach is wider than many importers expect. Cotton, polysilicon, tomatoes, and other Xinjiang-origin commodities move into global supply chains, so a product finished on China’s coast can still be detained when a component traces back to the region. CBP requires supply chain maps, audit reports, and purchase orders to rebut the presumption; shipments that fail review are denied entry or forfeited. If you source from China, map your supply chain to the raw material level.
Getting a Shipment Through Customs
Formal entry is generally required when goods are worth more than $2,500, and formal entry requires a customs bond before CBP will release the shipment. The bond guarantees payment of duties, taxes, and fees and compliance with entry requirements.13U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Bonds – How Are Continuous and Single Entry Bond Amounts Determined A single entry bond covers one shipment at an amount generally not less than the entered value plus duties, taxes, and fees. A continuous bond covers all entries for 12 months at 10% of duties, taxes, and fees paid, with a $100 minimum. For regular Chinese-goods importers, the continuous bond is almost always the better choice given how high the underlying duty amounts run.
The transaction value of the goods, meaning the price actually paid or payable for export to the United States plus certain additions like packing, selling commissions, and royalties, is the base for every percentage-based duty and fee.14Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 U.S. Code 1401a – Value
The documents every shipment needs:
- A commercial invoice with the seller’s and buyer’s names and addresses, a detailed description of the merchandise, quantities, and purchase price.15eCFR. 19 CFR 141.86 – Contents of Invoices and General Requirements
- A packing list matching the invoice, with weights and dimensions.
- The bill of lading or airway bill from the carrier.
- CBP Form 7501, the entry summary declaring classification, value, origin, and estimated duties.16U.S. Customs and Border Protection. CBP Form 7501
Entry summaries are filed electronically through the Automated Commercial Environment, CBP’s central processing platform.17U.S. Customs and Border Protection. ACE – The Import and Export Processing System Most importers hire a licensed customs broker, though you can act as importer of record yourself. The country of origin on Form 7501 must accurately show that the goods came from China. Routing Chinese goods through a third country and declaring that country as origin is transshipment, which CBP treats as fraud.
Estimated duties must be paid no later than 12 working days after the merchandise is entered or released.18Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 U.S. Code 1505 – Payment of Duties and Fees Missing that deadline draws interest on the unpaid balance. CBP’s release of the cargo isn’t the end of the file. Months later, CBP formally liquidates the entry, and if the review shows you underpaid, you owe the difference plus interest; if you overpaid, you’re entitled to a refund.
Recordkeeping and Penalty Exposure
Importers must keep all records related to an entry for five years from the date of entry, in original or electronic form, and produce readable copies on demand.19eCFR. 19 CFR Part 163 – Recordkeeping Willful failure to maintain or produce a demanded record can cost up to $100,000 or 75% of the appraised value of the merchandise, whichever is less, per release. Negligent failures cap at $10,000 or 40% of appraised value per release.
Errors in the entry itself carry separate penalties under 19 U.S.C. § 1592.20Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1592 – Penalties for Fraud, Gross Negligence, and Negligence Fraud, including intentional misclassification, false country-of-origin declarations, and deliberate undervaluation, can draw penalties up to the full domestic value of the merchandise. Gross negligence caps at four times the duties owed or the domestic value, whichever is less, or 40% of dutiable value where duties weren’t affected. Negligence caps at two times the duties owed or the domestic value, whichever is less, or 20% of dutiable value. Voluntary disclosure before CBP finds the error significantly reduces the penalty, so self-reporting almost always beats waiting.
Challenging a CBP Assessment
If CBP liquidates your entry at a higher duty rate than you expected, reclassifies your product, or makes another adverse decision, you can file a protest under 19 U.S.C. § 1514 within 180 days of the date of liquidation.21Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1514 – Protest Against Decisions of Customs Service The deadline is strict. Missing it permanently bars you from challenging the decision, both administratively and in the Court of International Trade.
Protests can challenge tariff classifications, valuations, country-of-origin determinations, anti-dumping and countervailing duty assessments, and denials of preferential treatment. Each protest must identify the specific decision, state the legal basis, and include supporting evidence. Given how many layers stack on Chinese goods and how much turns on classification, a successful protest can recover meaningful overpayments across every future entry of the same product.