U.S. Government Exploring New Section 301 Tariffs On 60 Countries, Including Canada And Mexico

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) issued a press release on June 4 that said it is launching a process that could result in new Section 301 tariffs on products from Canada, Mexico, and 58 other countries. The USTR put the proposal up for public comment. As the Federal Register notice explains, comments are due by July 6, 2026. The USTR alleged these countries had failed “to impose and effectively enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labor.”

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the countries’ perceived failure “creates a dynamic where American workers are forced to compete globally on an unlevel playing field.” He also argued U.S. “trading partners must do more to ensure that trade does not perversely encourage and entrench forced labor globally.”

Specifically, the USTR proposes:

• Additional duties on all products of the investigated countries, except as provided in Annex A to the Federal Register
• A new round of 10 percent tariffs on countries like Canada and Mexico that impose a forced labor import prohibition, that have committed to impose and enforce such a prohibition, or that have imposed a partial regime with the effect of preventing the importation of certain forced labor goods.
• A new round of 12.5 percent tariffs on all other countries, including China, Japan, and India.

As the USTR explained, Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 is designed to address unfair foreign acts, policies, or practices affecting U.S. commerce. It may be used to respond to unjustifiable, unreasonable, or discriminatory foreign government acts, policies, or practices that burden or restrict U.S. commerce.