Commerce to Begin Process Feb. 2 for US Content Exemptions From Truck, Bus Section 232 Tariffs
The Commerce Department will on Feb. 2 begin accepting documentation from importers to establish U.S. content exemptions from Section 232 tariffs on medium and heavy duty trucks and buses that qualify for USMCA, it said in a notice.
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Procedures for submitting the documentation will mirror those set in May for Section 232 tariffs on automobiles (see 2505190061). Required by the presidential proclamation that established the truck and bus tariffs beginning Nov. 1 (see 2510170043), the process is only available for trucks and buses imported from Mexico and Canada that qualify for USMCA preferential tariff treatment.
By submitting the documentation, importers will only have to pay tariffs on the value of non-U.S. content for a given model year. This first cycle covers model year 2026, but Commerce may allow the exemption to apply retroactively back to Nov. 1, 2025.
Going forward, including for cars imported in 2027, the exemptions will apply for only one year, and importers must submit new documentation by Oct. 1 for the following calendar year. For model year 2027, documentation will have to be submitted by Oct. 1, 2026.
Like with automobiles, importers of trucks and buses will have to submit documentation on each model’s total declared customs value; the value of U.S. content (defined as U.S. production-related activities that directly support the manufacture of the imported vehicle); the value of non-U.S. content; production locations and the country of final assembly; certification of eligibility for USMCA preference; and the importer name, importer of record number, manufacturer name, manufacturer facility, country of origin, and model information for every model requested in the submission.
Documentation must be certified by “an importer's Chief Financial Officer, General Counsel, or an equivalent-level of senior officer,” Commerce said.
Following submission, Commerce “will review each submission for completeness and compliance,” and may request “supplemental documentation or clarification.” After verifying the submission, Commerce will inform the importer and CBP of the non-U.S. content for each model, and “will provide CBP with a list of importers and MHDVs [medium and heavy-duty vehicles] authorized by Commerce, including importer name, importer of record number, manufacturer name, manufacturer facility, country of origin, and model of each authorized MHDV.”
Importers must “promptly inform” Commerce and request a new eligibility determination if there is a change in sourcing or production that results in a decrease in U.S. content for an already approved model. Importers may also submit new documentation if a change results in an increase in U.S. content.