Monday, July 27, 2026 from Ceramic Tile Distributors Association (CTDA)

CTDA MEMBER ALERT – PRESIDENTIAL ACTION RESULTS IN LOWER TARIFFS ON CERAMIC TILE IMPORTED INTO THE US FROM THE EUROPEAN UNION, HIGHER TARIFFS ON TILE FROM TURKEY, BRAZIL

FROM: Rick Church, Executive Director

Robin W. Grover, CTDA Legal Counsel

This is to provide you with an update on Presidential action on US tariffs that will result in a lower duty rate being applicable to your ceramic tile imports from the European Union (“EU”). These tariff modifications are effective today for imports entered into the US from the 27 member countries of the EU.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

• The “new” US tariff on ceramic tile from the European Union, including Italy and Spain will be 10 percent ad valorem.
• The “new” US tariff on tile from India will be 18.5 to 20 percent, depending on the tile’s classification under HTS 6907.
• The “new” US tariff on tile from Turkey will be 21 to 22.5 percent, depending on the tile’s classification under HTSUS 6907.
• The “new” US tariff rate on tile from Brazil appears to be 46 to 47.5 percent.
• Tile from Mexico and Canada that qualifies as “originating” under the USMCA is not subject to the new tariffs.
• The “301” tariffs are not stacked on top of the Section 232 tariffs on certain metals and designated products containing these metals.

BACKGROUND:

President Trump last night issued a decision imposing additional tariffs on US imports from 60 countries in furtherance of a Section 301 investigation into the alleged inadequacy of their policies restricting the import of products made with forced labor.

The 27 countries of the European Union were among the group targeted. Previously, the Administration and the EU had agreed on a new tariff agreement which the EU had implemented on July 1st; the so-called “Turnberry Agreement” limited total US tariffs on EU origin goods to a maximum of 15 percent.

The President’s order is entitled Actions by the United States in the Investigations under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 of the Acts, Policies, and Practices of 60 Economies Related to the Failure of Each Economy to Impose and Effectively Enforce a Prohibition on the Importation of Goods Produced with Forced Labor (July 23, 2026). Key provisions state:

Section 1. Tariffs and Exemptions. (a) Except as otherwise provided in this memorandum, the Trade Representative shall impose the following tariff rates on all goods of the economy for which an act, policy, or practice was found actionable under section 301:

(ii) Tariff rate of 10 percent or 12.5 percent, net of MFN rate: For a product of the European Union or Taiwan, where such product’s US MFN tariff is less than 10 percent, the Trade Representative shall impose a section 301 tariff pursuant to these investigations so that the sum of the MFN tariff and the section 301 tariff shall be 10 percent, and where such product’s MFN tariff is greater than or equal to 10 percent, the Trade Representative shall impose a section 301 tariff of zero.

Thus, for imports from the European Union, the new Section 301 forced labor tariffs do not stack on top of Most-Favored Nation (MFN) rates; instead, they use a “net of MFN” top-up calculation where the total combined duty is capped at 10%. For ceramic tile imports from the EU, this yields a “new” US tariff as of goods imported today of 10 percent, which is unchanged from the MFN rate for many types of tile classified under HTSUS Chapter 69, Heading 6907. For other types of tile so classified, the “new” tariff rate will rise from 8.5 percent MFN to 10 percent. There are certain product exclusions, which do not include tile.

Other Country Suppliers: For India, the Section 301 tariff of 10 percent will be added to existing MFN rates of 8.5 to 10 percent, yielding a tariff on tile of 18.5 to 20 percent, depending on its classification in HTSUS 6907.

For Turkey, the new 12.5% ad valorem duty is layered on top of the baseline MFN duty. The “new” tariff will be the MFN ranging from 8.5 to 10 percent plus the 12.5 percent yielding 21 to 22.5 percent depending on the tile’s classification in HTSUS Heading 6907.

For Brazil, the current reading of a more confusing situation is that the 12.5 percent Section 301 tariff is stacked atop both the 8.5 to 10 percent MFN tariff on ceramic tile, plus the 25 percent tariff imposed on most Brazilian products recently. This would render the US tariff on Brazilian ceramic tile in the range from 46 to 47.5 percent.

We have tried to keep this report on a complex tariff policy as simple and direct as possible. If you have any questions or would like the added information, please contact CTDA at your convenience.