The public comment period has closed and hearings are now underway in one of the broadest Section 301 actions ever proposed. Written comments on the U.S. Trade Representative’s proposed forced labor tariffs — additional duties of 10% to 12.5% on imports from 60 economies — were due July 6, and the Section 301 Committee convened public hearings on July 7 at the U.S. International Trade Commission in Washington, DC. The hearings are scheduled to continue through July 9.
This action is separate from USTR’s country-specific Section 301 investigations, including the recently initiated Germany pharmaceutical pricing case and the Brazil investigation now approaching its own decision deadline. It is far broader: taken together, the 60 economies account for the overwhelming majority of U.S. goods imports.
How the Investigation Got Here
USTR initiated the 60 parallel investigations on March 12, 2026, examining whether each economy’s failure to impose and effectively enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labor is actionable under Section 301. On June 2, USTR announced affirmative findings across the board, determining that each economy’s failure is unreasonable and burdens or restricts U.S. commerce.
USTR found that 54 economies — including China, India, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and Vietnam — have failed to impose a forced labor import prohibition at all, while six others (Canada, Ecuador, the European Union, Indonesia, Mexico, and Pakistan) have such a prohibition on the books but have failed to effectively enforce it.
The Proposed Tariff Structure
The proposed remedy is a two-tier additional duty on all products of the investigated economies, with limited exceptions:
- 10% for economies that impose a forced labor import prohibition, have committed to one through an Agreement on Reciprocal Trade, or maintain a partial regime — a group that includes Canada, Mexico, the European Union, the United Kingdom, and ART partners such as Argentina, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Guatemala, Malaysia, and Taiwan.
- 12.5% for all other investigated economies.
Proposed exceptions include articles subject to Section 232 sectoral tariffs, goods qualifying for USMCA preferential treatment, CAFTA-DR yarn-forward textiles and apparel, informational materials and donations, and products listed in Annex A of the Federal Register notice — a list that mirrors the exclusions under the current temporary Section 122 tariff, covering certain food and agricultural products, energy products, scarce raw materials, and civil aircraft and parts. USTR has also proposed a textile mechanism that would allow a certain volume of apparel and textile imports from certain economies to enter at a reduced rate tied to purchases of U.S.-produced cotton and textiles.
Why the Timing Matters
The forced labor investigations are a central piece of the administration’s strategy to rebuild country-level tariffs on a firmer legal footing after the Supreme Court’s February 2026 decision invalidating the IEEPA-based tariffs. The temporary 10% global tariff imposed under Section 122 expires on July 24, 2026, and trade observers widely expect USTR to have final Section 301 action ready at or near that date so that baseline duty coverage continues without interruption.
Post-hearing rebuttal comments are due five days after the final day of hearings, meaning the administrative record could close by mid-July — leaving USTR room to announce final tariff rates, country assignments, and implementation dates before the Section 122 window closes.
What Importers Should Do
- Model landed-cost exposure under both the 10% and 12.5% scenarios for each sourcing country.
- Review whether products fall under Section 232 coverage, USMCA qualification, or the proposed Annex A exclusions — each would remove goods from the new duties as proposed.
- Watch for the final notice of action, which will set entry-into-force dates and clarify treatment of goods on the water.
- Monitor the hearing record and rebuttal-comment phase for changes to rates, exclusions, and the textile mechanism.
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