What You Need to Know About the New Tariffs on Imports from Russia

Our summary of the new sanctions and export controls is available here. Below is what you need to know about imports into the United States:

I. A Proclamation on Adjusting Imports on Aluminum into the United States:

On February 24, the Biden Administration issued a Proclamation imposing additional tariffs pursuant to Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 on imports into the United States of aluminum and certain aluminum derivative articles produced in Russia, as well as aluminum articles where any amount of primary aluminum used in the article is smelted or cast in Russia. Pursuant to previous proclamations issued under the Trump Administration, a 10% ad valorem tariff has applied to imports of aluminum into the United States from Russia since March 2018 and to imports of certain derivative aluminum products into the United States from Russia since February 2020. The new Proclamation replaces those existing tariffs with the increased tariffs on aluminum and certain derivative aluminum articles, as follows:

1. On March 10, 2023, a 200% ad valorem tariff on aluminum and certain derivative aluminum articles that are the product of Russia will take effect. Importantly, the tariffs will only apply to imports into the United States of the specific aluminum and derivative aluminum articles specified in a forthcoming Annex to the Proclamation.
2. On April 10, 2023, a 200% ad valorem tariff on aluminum and certain derivative aluminum articles where any amount of primary aluminum used in the manufacture of the aluminum or certain derivative aluminum articles is smelted in Russia, or where the articles are cast in Russia, will take effect. “Primary aluminum” is defined as new aluminum metal that is produced from alumina (or aluminum oxide) by the electrolytic Hall-Heroult process. Again, the tariffs will only apply to imports into the United States of the specific aluminum and derivative aluminum articles specified in a forthcoming Annex to the Proclamation.
3. Covered aluminum and certain derivative aluminum articles entered into a US foreign trade zone under “privileged foreign status” will be subject to the provisions of the tariff in effect at the time of the entry for consumption.

To implement the tariffs effective April 10, importers must provide US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) information identifying where the primary aluminum used in the manufacture of imported aluminum and certain derivative aluminum articles is smelted and where the articles are cast. These requirements will be implemented by CBP in a subsequent notice, but will likely mirror the Aluminum Import Monitoring System, which requires importers to identify the country or countries where the largest and second largest volume of primary aluminum was smelted and the country where aluminum products were most recently cast.

At present, no countries are exempted from the 200% tariffs on aluminum and certain derivative aluminum articles smelt or cast in Russia. However, countries implementing a tariff of 200% or more on their own imports of aluminum articles into the United States from Russia may ultimately be exempt. Russian aluminum and certain derivative aluminum articles, as well as aluminum and certain derivative aluminum articles smelted or cast in Russia, are no longer eligible for any General Approved Exclusions from the Section 232 tariffs on aluminum, nor for in-quota or tariff-rate quota treatment under the agreements negotiated pursuant to those tariffs.

The Annex to the Proclamation listing the specific aluminum and derivative aluminum articles covered by the additional tariffs has not yet been released, but the current 10% Section 232 tariffs on aluminum and certain derivative aluminum articles cover the following subheadings of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), including any subsequent revisions to these HTSUS classifications:

• 7601 (unwrought); 7604 (bars, rods, and profiles); 7605 (wire); 7606 and 7607 (flat rolled products); 7608 and 7609 (tubes and pipes and tube and pipe fitting); 7616.99.5160 and 7616.99.5170 (castings and forgings); and
• Derivatives of aluminum articles described in Annex I.

We will update this alert when the Annex providing a more detailed list of the covered aluminum and derivative aluminum articles is issued.

II. A Proclamation on Increasing Duties on Certain Articles from the Russian Federation:

The Biden Administration also issued a second Proclamation increasing duties on imports into the United States of certain articles from Russia. The Administration previously suspended nondiscriminatory tariff treatment for Russia and for the Republic of Belarus, and imposed the rates of duty set forth in column 2 of the HTSUS on all products of Russian and Belarusian origin effective April 9, 2022. On June 27, 2022, the column 2 duty rates applicable to certain products from Russia were increased to 35% ad valorem. The new Proclamation implements further increases as follows:

• The column 2 rate is increased to 35% ad valorem for certain additional products, including certain chemicals, metals, minerals, and automotive parts (bumpers and stampings); and
• The column 2 rate is increased to 70% ad valorem for certain other additional products, including metals (aluminum and steel), containers, screws and bolts, certain waste and scrap; and

The full list of products covered by the additional duties is provided in an Annex. A chart with the HTSUS, description, and updated duty rate of products included in the Annex is available here.

Imports into the United States covered by Executive Order 14066, Executive Order 14066, and Executive Order 14068 remain prohibited. This includes all products classified under HTSUS Chapter 27 (EO 14066); crude oil; petroleum; petroleum fuels, oils, and products of their distillation; liquefied natural gas; coal; and coal products (EO 14066); and fish, seafood, and preparations thereof; alcoholic beverages; and non‑industrial diamonds (EO 14068).