How Much Is Import Duty From China to the USA? (July 2026)
There is no flat import duty rate from China. Your duty bill is a stack of layers: the base rate for your product's HS code plus the China-specific tariffs that sit on top of it, all charged on the product value only. This guide shows how the bill is built, what common products actually pay, and a worked dollar example.
What makes up import duty from China to the USA?
For what each layer is doing right now (expiries, court cases, proposed new duties), see China tariff rates today. This page's job is the calculation itself: how those layers turn into the dollar figure on your customs bill.
How do you calculate import duty from China to the USA?
Five steps. The first two find your base rate, the next two add the China layers, and the last one adds the entry fees.
- Find your HTS code. Every product has a 10-digit code in the official Harmonized Tariff Schedule. Search a plain description of your product. If two codes look plausible, the difference can be worth thousands, so ask a licensed customs broker.
- Read the base duty rate. That is the "General" rate of duty column for your code. It ranges from 0% (many electronics) to over 37.5% (some footwear).
- Add the China-specific tariff layers for your code. Check whether your code is on a Section 301 list (List 3 adds 25%, List 4A adds 7.5%, and some codes carry no 301 duty at all). Then add the separate 12.5% Section 301 forced-labor duty (HTS 9903.05.31) if your product is covered: it applies to China-origin goods entered from 24 July 2026 and stacks on top of any list duty, but the main computer, phone, networking, display, and chip headings are exempt, and so is anything already covered by Section 232. Certain covered products (steel and aluminum lines, plus a narrow set of advanced-computing chips and their derivatives) carry Section 232 duties at their own rates instead of a single universal figure.
- Multiply the combined rate by your product value only. US customs duty is charged on the price of the goods (the FOB value), not on freight or insurance (CBP explains the dutiable value here). Sites that compute US duty on the CIF total are using another country's rules and will overstate your bill. One nuance: the value declared to CBP can also include certain additions (packing, selling commissions, assists, royalties), so this calculator's plain FOB base is a planning simplification.
- Add the two entry fees. The Merchandise Processing Fee: $2.69 flat for a typical automated informal entry (product value up to $2,500; manual or CBP-prepared informal entries pay a little more), or 0.3464% of product value for formal entries, minimum $33.58, maximum $651.50 (FY2026). Shipping by ocean adds the Harbor Maintenance Fee at 0.125% of product value.
Watch for one set of extras this page does not model: antidumping and countervailing duties (AD/CVD). They are product-specific extra duties that do not show up in the normal HTS base-rate lookup (the USITC explains how AD/CVD works), and this calculator does not include them. If an AD/CVD order covers your product, your customs broker will know.
That total is your duty and fees bill. It is not yet your landed cost, and it is not yet a decision: the calculator runs these same layers, then adds freight, marketplace fees, and your sale price to tell you whether the order is a GO, TIGHT, or NO-GO.
What does import duty look like on a real order?
Take a typical small FBA order: 2,000 cotton T-shirts at $4.00 each, so $8,000 of product (FOB), shipped by ocean for $1,800. Cotton T-shirts classify under HTS 6109.10.00, which carries a 16.5% General duty rate, and the heading is on Section 301 List 4A at 7.5%. Apparel is not on the exemption list for the new forced-labor duty, so that 12.5% layer applies too. Here is the duty and fees bill:
| Charge | How it is calculated | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Base HTS duty | $8,000 × 16.5% (HTS 6109.10.00 General rate) | $1,320.00 |
| Section 301 Forced-Labor Duty (2026, +12.5%) | $8,000 × 12.5% (HTS 9903.05.31, stacks on the list duty below) | $1,000.00 |
| Section 301 (List 4A) | $8,000 × 7.5% | $600.00 |
| MPF (formal entry, FY2026) | 0.3464% of $8,000 is $27.71, below the floor, so the $33.58 minimum applies | $33.58 |
| HMF (ocean freight) | $8,000 × 0.125% | $10.00 |
| Duty and fees total | About 37% of the product value | $2,963.58 |
Your exact line and rate can differ: confirm them before ordering. To reproduce this in the calculator, enter 16.5 in the manual HS-rate field (the Clothing category default, 20%, is a broader planning estimate across apparel lines). Freight and insurance are not in any of these calculations: they never enter the duty base.
Notice what that does per unit: the shirts cost $4.00 each from the supplier, but duty and fees alone add about $1.48 per shirt before freight even enters the picture. Freight, insurance, and marketplace fees then decide whether the order actually makes money: that full landed-cost picture is the job of the cost to import from China to the USA guide, and the calculator runs both in seconds.
What are typical import duty rates from China by product?
These are the product types small importers ask about most, the HTS heading each usually falls under, and how the layers stack in 2026. They use this calculator's category planning estimates: your exact code and base duty can differ, so confirm your own line before ordering.
| Common product (HTS heading) | Base duty* | Common China add-ons** | ≈ Stack† |
|---|---|---|---|
| Computers, laptops, tablets (8471) | 0% (often duty-free) | 0% current Section 301 list duty; forced-labor exempt‡ | ≈ 0% |
| Networking and routing gear (8517.62) | 0% (often duty-free) | +25% Section 301 (List 3); forced-labor exempt‡ | ≈ 25% |
| Toys, games, scooters, puzzles (9503) | 0% (often duty-free) | +12.5% Section 301 forced-labor duty (0% current list duty) | ≈ 12.5% |
| Footwear, textile upper (6404) | ≈ 12% (range 0–37.5%) | +7.5% Section 301 (List 4A), +12.5% forced-labor duty | ≈ 32% |
| Handbags, backpacks, luggage (4202) | ≈ 17.5% (synthetic) | +25% Section 301 (List 3), +12.5% forced-labor duty | ≈ 55% |
| Portable speakers (8518) | 0% (modeled) | +7.5% Section 301 (List 4A), +12.5% forced-labor duty | ≈ 20% |
*Base duty is a planning estimate mapped to this calculator's category rates, not your exact HTS line.
The heading shown is the most common one for that product type; your specific code and its base rate
can differ. Look up the exact line at hts.usitc.gov.
**Section 301 status shown per heading as flagged in the HTSUS Chapter 99 notes: List 3 adds 25% (HTS
9903.88.03/.04), List 4A adds 7.5% (9903.88.15), and some headings (toys, laptops) currently carry no
additional Section 301 duty. Individual codes under a heading can differ or carry exclusions, so check
yours against the USTR list.
†The separate 12.5% Section 301 forced-labor duty applies to covered China-origin goods from 24
July 2026 and stacks with existing Section 301 list duties. Product exemptions apply, and Section
232-covered goods are exempt from the forced-labor layer. Figures are a share of product value and
exclude MPF and HMF. These layers were last checked against official sources on 24 July 2026.
‡Computers, laptops, and tablets under HTS 8471 currently carry no additional Section 301 duty
and are exempt from the new forced-labor duty under note 52(b)/9903.05.86. Smartphones (8517.13) are in
the same double-zero position. Networking and routing gear (8517.62) is also forced-labor exempt but
still carries the 25% List 3 Section 301 tariff. Portable speakers under 8518 are not on the new
exemption list and pay the 7.5% List 4A rate plus the 12.5% forced-labor duty.
Your product not in the list? Look up your exact HTS code at hts.usitc.gov, then put the confirmed base, Section 301, and Section 232 rates into the calculator's editable fields.
Which import duty guide matches your product?
Each category below has its own deep guide with a category-specific worked example, the classification traps for that product type, and the calculator preset to use:
- Import duty on electronics from China: why a 0% base duty is not duty-free, and which China layers do the real damage on electronics.
- Import duty on footwear from China: the widest base-duty range in the schedule (0–37.5%+, material-driven), where the HS override matters most.
- Import duty on bags and luggage from China: the highest common consumer base duty (about 17.5% synthetic, about 8% leather), where the outer material drives the rate.
Importing something else? The calculator covers more categories (apparel, furniture, toys, auto parts) with editable rates for any HS code you have confirmed.
Is import duty the whole cost of importing from China?
No, and this is the most expensive mistake in importing: treating the supplier price plus duty as the real cost. Freight, insurance, and marketplace fees sit on top, and together they decide whether the product makes money. The cost to import from China to the USA guide walks the full landed-cost picture with its own worked example.
Two related questions this site covers separately: if your supplier quotes DDP ("all duties included"), who actually pays the duty on a DDP shipment, and if you already overpaid a tariff that courts later struck down, who gets the refund.
What can change your import duty bill in 2026?
Tariff layers move: surcharges expire or get extended, new Section 301 duties get proposed, product exclusion lists change. The layer-by-layer status, with dates and official sources, lives on the China tariff rates today page, which we re-check against the Federal Register, USTR, CBP, and the USITC schedule whenever a rule moves.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much is import duty from China to the USA?
It depends on your product's HTS code, because the bill is a stack of layers charged on the product value only: the base HTS duty (0% for many electronics, up to 37.5% or more for some footwear), Section 301 China tariffs where your code is listed (25% on List 3, 7.5% on List 4A), the separate 12.5% Section 301 forced-labor duty on covered China-origin goods entered from 24 July 2026, and Section 232 duties on covered goods, plus the MPF and HMF entry fees. Typical stacks for common FBA products run from about 0% on some laptops to about 55% on synthetic handbags.
How much is customs from China to the US?
Customs charges are the duty and tariff layers plus two entry fees. The Merchandise Processing Fee for FY2026 is $2.69 for a typical automated informal entry up to $2,500 (manual or CBP-prepared entries pay a little more), or 0.3464% of product value for formal entries with a minimum of $33.58 and a maximum of $651.50. The Harbor Maintenance Fee adds 0.125% of the product value on qualifying ocean shipments. In this page's worked example, the full customs bill on an $8,000 apparel order comes to $2,963.58, about 37% of the product value.
Is import tax from China the same as import duty?
Mostly, in the way searchers mean it: what people call import tax, import duty, customs duty, or tariffs all land in one bill that US Customs and Border Protection collects at entry, though the terms are not precise legal synonyms. The US has no federal import VAT or GST, unlike the UK or EU. CBP does not collect state sales or use tax at the border: separate state tax obligations can arise later, when you sell the goods.
What import charges from China apply besides duty?
Two customs fees apply on top of the duty layers: the Merchandise Processing Fee ($2.69 for a typical automated informal entry, or 0.3464% formal with a $33.58 minimum and $651.50 maximum in FY2026) and the Harbor Maintenance Fee (0.125% of the product value) on qualifying ocean shipments. Freight and insurance are real costs too, but they are not customs charges and are never part of the duty base. And do not count on the old $800 de minimis exemption: it is suspended, so low-value shipments owe normal duties and fees.
How do I calculate import duty from China?
Find your product's HTS code in the official USITC tariff schedule, read the base duty rate for that code, then add the China-specific layers that apply to it: Section 301 where your code is listed, the 12.5% forced-labor duty unless an electronics or Section 232 exemption covers your product, and Section 232 for covered goods. Multiply the combined rate by your product (FOB) value only, never by freight or insurance, then add the MPF and, for ocean shipments, the HMF. A calculator that models these layers can do this in seconds.
Official sources used for this page
- USITC Harmonized Tariff Schedule for product-level HTS codes and base duty rates.
- USTR China Section 301 tariff actions for the China tariff lists and exclusions.
- CBP: dutiable value guidance for duty being charged on the goods value, not freight or insurance.
- USITC: AD/CVD duties and the HTS for the antidumping/countervailing caution.
- Federal Register: FY2026 CBP user fees for the MPF values.
- Federal Register: Harbor Maintenance Fee notice for HMF treatment.
- Federal Register: non-postal de minimis suspension and postal de minimis suspension.
- USTR final action notice (pre-publication, 23 July 2026) for the 12.5% China rate, HTS 9903.05.31, note 52 exemptions, and stacking treatment.
- CBP CSMS #69326983 for the Section 301 forced-labor filing guidance effective 24 July 2026.
Planning Information Only
This page is general information, not legal, customs, tax, or financial advice. Final rates and entry treatment are determined by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and may depend on facts this page cannot know, including product classification, exclusions, origin analysis, shipment channel, and entry date. Verify current treatment with official sources or a licensed customs broker before committing money to an order.