The United States and the Republic of Korea (ROK) issued a Joint Fact Sheet recently, announcing updates to tariff treatment under the U.S.–Korea Strategic Trade and Investment Deal (U.S.–ROK Deal). These changes modify duty rates on certain South Korean goods and alter how the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) treats specific automotive and manufactured products. We’ve provided a synopsis below but you can read the details here.
Effective Dates
- November 1, 2025: Duty changes for automobiles and auto parts.
- November 14, 2025: Duty changes for goods such as iron, steel, wood products, and others listed in Part B of the Annex.
Key Duty Changes for Korean Products
The U.S.–ROK Deal establishes new additional ad valorem duties for qualifying South Korean goods under certain HTSUS headings. These include:
- Automobiles & Auto Parts
- Passenger vehicles and light trucks (Headings 9903.94.60–9903.94.65) will incur new 15% ad valorem duties unless the existing column 1 rate is already 15% or higher
- Auto parts (Headings 9903.94.62–9903.94.65) will also be subject to these adjusted rates
- Iron & Steel Products
- Additional duties apply to iron and steel products under multiple headings (e.g.,9903.81.87, 9903.81.88, 9903.81.94)
- Wood Products
- Certain wood products under 9903.76.23 and others listed in U.S. note 37 will now be subject to revised ordinary duty treatment and may lose eligibility for special tariff preferences
- Aluminum-Derivative Goods
- Some aluminum-related products also receive new duties under updated subheadings referenced throughout the Annex
3. How Column 1 Duty Thresholds Work
Under the U.S.–ROK Deal:
- If the normal duty rate is less than 15%, the normal duties + the reciprocal tariff shall equal 15% in total (9903.02.80)
- If the normal duty rate, however, is at least 15%, then the normal duties + the reciprocal tariff shall equal the normal duty rate. (9903.02.79)
This structure ensures that Korean-origin goods under the affected HTS headings all meet a minimum duty rate requirement.
4. HTSUS Amendments
The Annex makes extensive edits to the HTSUS, including:
- Adding new subdivisions to U.S. notes to clarify which goods from Korea qualify for revised duties
- Deleting outdated HTS text and inserting updated tariff lines
- Adding new tariff lines in numerical order for civil aircraft parts, wood products, metals, and additional industrial goods
These changes primarily affect importers of automotive goods, manufactured components, steel, wood, and industrial products.
5. Summary for Importers
Importers of goods from South Korea should be aware of:
- New minimum duty levels for autos, auto parts, and various industrial products
- Revised HTSUS classifications that may change duty calculations
- Potential loss of preferential duty treatment for wood products and other categories
- Immediate compliance requirements, as duties apply to goods entered or withdrawn for consumption on or after the noted effective dates
Alba offers guidance and support on all of the above topics. Additionally, talk with us about:
- HTS & Compliance Check: We can validate your current product classifications to ensure you can benefit from this extension across as much of your product portfolio as possible
- Post Summary Corrections: If we identify misclassifications where you should’ve been benefiting, we can investigate and file PSC as appropriate
- Forward Policy Monitoring: We will continue to monitor trade and regulatory updates, and provide you with additional alerts so you can stay ahead of shifts
Simply contact us and we can set up some time to talk.
