USTR initiates review of Section 301 duties on Chinese imports

In brief

The United States Trade Representative (USTR) announced on May 3 that it is commencing the required statutory process leading up to the four-year anniversaries of the tariff actions in the Section 301 investigation of China’s acts, policies, and practices related to technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation.

The USTR has begun the process by notifying representatives of domestic industries that benefit from the July 6, 2018, and August 23, 2018, tariff actions of the possible termination of those actions and of the opportunity for the representatives to request continuation. If a request for continuation is received, USTR will conduct a review of the tariff actions.

Action item: Taxpayers that benefit from the Section 301 tariffs on Chinese imports should consider requesting continuation of those tariffs, with the objective that the USTR will undertake its review. Companies opposed to the tariffs need not do anything at this point and will have an opportunity to submit comments if a review takes place.

Requests for continuation of the July 6, 2018, tariff action must be submitted before July 6, 2022.  (The window for requests for continuation of the August 23, 2018, action will open on June 24, 2022, and close on August 22, 2022.) If the USTR receives at least one request for continuation, it will publish an additional notice in the Federal Register after July 6 announcing the continuation of the tariff action and will proceed with a review of the tariffs. As part of that review, USTR intends to open a separate portal for interested persons to submit comments on, among other matters, the effectiveness of the action in achieving the objectives of Section 301, other actions that could be taken, and the effects of such actions on the US economy, including consumers.

Additional information on the review process may be found in the USTR’s May 7 Federal Register notice.

For prior coverage of the Section 301 tariffs on Chinese imports, see PwC Tax Insights, US Trade Court upholds legality of Section 301 China tariffs, but remands for further explanation, April 27, 2022; USTR reinstates certain previously extended exclusions from additional duties on imports from China, April 8, 2022; USTR previews US China trade relationship, October 6, 2021.