On April 17, 2025, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) issued a final notice of action for its Section 301 investigation on “China’s Targeting the Maritime, Logistics, and Shipbuilding Sectors for Dominance.”1 The action will impose significant new port service fees on vessels that are owned or operated by China-linked entities, most vessels that were built in China but that are owned and operated by non-Chinese entities, and all foreign-built vehicle carriers. Liquified natural gas (LNG) tankers will face a rule requiring certain percentages of US LNG exports to be carried on US-built LNG tankers, instead of the fees.

The requirements will gradually phase into effect over the next few years, beginning with the first fees on covered vessels arriving at a US port from outside the customs territory of the United States on October 14, 2025. Regulators will issue more implementation details for the actions in the next few months. USTR is also proposing to impose additional tariffs on certain ship-to-shore cranes, shipping containers, truck chassis and chassis parts.

Overview of the USTR notice

The notice finalizes with modifications the proposed actions that USTR originally published in February 2025.2 USTR began the investigation in April 2024 under the Biden administration, seeking to investigate alleged market abuses in the shipbuilding and maritime sector by the government of China.3 Depending on the size of the covered vessel, the fees will reach millions of US dollars per voyage. Relative to the original proposed action, USTR has significantly scaled back the proposed export carriage restrictions and narrowed the scope of the proposed fees on Chinese-built vessels.

The three vessel service fees are:

• A large, annually increasing fee on any vessel with a Chinese operator or owned by an entity of China;
• A smaller, annually increasing fee on vessels built in China (that are not operated or owned by Chinese entities); and
• A set fee on operators of all foreign-built vehicle carriers.

Liquified natural gas (LNG) tankers, which are exempt from the service fees, will instead face a rule requiring an increasing percentages of US LNG exports to be carried on US-built LNG tankers. The restrictions will enter effect in 2028. The government will have to issue additional regulations to clarify how the rule would work. USTR’s original proposal to apply an export carriage requirement to all US exports was not included in the final action.

In the same notice, USTR issued a new proposed action to impose an additional 100% tariff on ship-to-shore cranes built by China-linked entities or that incorporate China-origin components (regardless of the country in which the crane was manufactured), as well as additional tariffs of 20% to 100% on China-origin shipping containers, truck chassis and chassis parts. The timeline for completing and implementing the tariffs is yet to be determined, and USTR is seeking public input on the proposal. Comments are due May 19, 2025.

The Trump administration is considering other measures to promote US shipbuilding and limit the use of foreign-built ships, including a potential fee on maritime cargo unloaded in Canadian and Mexican ports that is shipped overland to the United States. These other proposals (which are still under development) are described in the April 9, 2025 executive order, “Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance.”4 Congress is also considering legislative action to support the US maritime industry, with a new bipartisan bill seeking to build on the Trump administration’s actions.

Service fees on Chinese vessel operators and Chinese-owned vessels, Chinese-built vessels, and foreign-built vehicle carriers
The three fees, which are detailed in Annex I, II, and III of the USTR notice, will gradually increase in size over the next few years. The actions will begin to enter into effect on October 14, 2025 (180 days after the date of the notice), and then follow separate implementation schedules described in the annexes of the notice.

The fees and export rules are not cumulative. Vessel operators (other than LNG tanker operators) will only be subject to one of the three fees. LNG tankers will only be subject to the export rule requiring certain percentages of US LNG exports to be carried on US-built LNG tankers. More specifically:

• A vessel owned or operated by a Chinese vessel owner or Chinese vessel operator would pay the fee for Chinese vessel owners and vessel operators. The vessel would pay one fee whether owned or operated, and would not pay the second fee in addition to the first if the vessel is also Chinese-built.
• The Chinese-built vessel fee only applies to vessel operators that are not subject to the Chinese vessel operator or Chinese vessel owner fee (and are not otherwise exempted).
• Vehicle carrier operators will only pay the vehicle carrier fee regardless of owner/operator or where the vessel is built (unless the ship is built in the United States). Chinese-operated, Chinese-owned, and Chinese-built vehicle carriers would not be covered by the China-specific fees.
• LNG tankers are only subject to the LNG export rule and will not be subject to any of the fees.

In its original proposal, USTR had also proposed a fee on non-Chinese vessel operators based on the number of Chinese-built ships in the operators’ overall fleets and a fee based on the number of Chinese vessels on operators’ order books. Those two proposed fees were not included in the final action.

Time, place, frequency, and order of the fees

The vessel operator5 will be responsible for paying the fees to US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), “on or before the entry of a [vessel] at the first US port or place from outside the Customs territory.” The three fees appear to only be assessed for the first port call per voyage to the United States (rather than compounding for each port call), though some of the language is unclear.

The fees on Chinese owned or operated vessels and Chinese-built vessels are also capped at being charged five times per year per vessel (the fee on foreign-built vehicle carriers does not reference any annual limits).6 The notice states CBP will provide additional guidance on payment processes.

For the fees on Chinese-built vessels and foreign-built vehicle carriers, the vessel owners7 may apply for a suspension of the vessel fees on a particular vessel for up to three years if the owner orders and takes delivery of a US-built vessel of equal or greater size. Owners will be eligible for the suspension upon order of, and until delivery of, the comparable US-built vessel. If the owner does not take delivery of the ordered US vessel within three years, the suspended fees become due immediately.

Phased fee on Chinese vessel operators and vessel owners (Annex I)

The government will assess a service fee on any vessel entered into a US port that has a Chinese operator or that is owned by an entity in China (which are further defined in Annex I of the notice). The fee is assessed on the net tonnage of the vessel and will increase over time. The fee is set at $0 for the first 180 days, until October 14, 2025. Effective on October 14, the fee will increase to $50 per net ton. The fee will increase in increments of $30 on each anniversary of the action’s implementation until April 17, 2028, at which time the final fee will be $140 per net ton.

Phased fee on Chinese-built vessels (Annex II)

A service fee will be assessed on US port entries by Chinese-built vessels (other than vehicle carriers, LNG tankers, vessels subject to Annex I, or vessels that are otherwise exempt under Annex II). This fee will be based on the higher of either (i) a fee based on the net tonnage of the vessel, or (ii) a fee per container8 (in practice, the container-based fee would only be an option for containerized cargo).
The fee is $0 until October 14, 2025, and will then increase incrementally over the next three years. The fee per net ton would begin at $18 on October 14, 2025, and increase each year on April 17 to a final total of $33 per net ton on April 17, 2028. The fee per container discharged will start at $120 per container on October 14, 2025, and increase each year on April 17 until reaching $250 per container on April 17, 2028.

The fee includes several significant exceptions for Chinese-built vessels under certain circumstances, which exempt most trade within North America, many US-owned ships, and certain smaller size classes of vessels. The fees will also “not apply to US government cargo.” The exceptions for Chinese-built vessels are:

• US-owned or US-flagged vessels enrolled in the Voluntary Intermodal Sealift Agreement, the Maritime Security Program, the Tanker Security Program, or the Cable Security Program.
• Vessels arriving empty or in ballast.
• Vessels with a capacity (deadweight tonnage9) of equal to or less than: 4,000 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (for container ships), 55,000 deadweight tons (for breakbulk or general cargo vessels — those where goods are broken into groups and loaded on pallets or in crates or transported individually in holds), or an “individual bulk capacity” of 80,000 deadweight tons (for bulkers — vessels that carry loose cargo like grain, coal, or other unpackaged commodities).
• Vessels engaged in short sea shipping, which is defined as “vessels entering a US port in the continental United States from a voyage of less than 2,000 nautical miles from a foreign port or point.” This exception will generally exclude from the Annex II fee most trade within North America, including trade with Central America, Canada, and the Caribbean islands. Shipping routes crossing the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, as well as most routes to South America, exceed 2,000 nautical miles.
• All dedicated chemical tankers (“specialized or special purpose-built vessels for the transport of chemical substances in bulk liquid forms”).
• US-owned vessels, where the US entity owning the vessel is controlled by US persons and is at least 75% beneficially owned by US persons.
• Vessels identified as “Lakers Vessels” on CBP Vessel Entrance or Clearance Statement (CBP Form 1300 or its electronic equivalent). Lakers are narrow-hulled bulkers used to transport raw materials in the Great Lakes of North America.

Phased fee on foreign vehicle carriers (Annex III)

A service fee will be assessed on all foreign-built vehicle carriers, regardless of the country of construction or owner/operator. The fee is based on the Car Equivalent Unit (CEU) capacity of the ship, set at $150 per CEU capacity of the entering foreign-built vessel beginning on October 14, 2025. This fee does not increase each year.

A vehicle carrier is defined as a vessel identified on the CBP Vessel Entrance or Clearance Statement (CBP Form 1300 or its electronic filing equivalent) as “Vehicle Carriers.” Informally, vehicle carriers can generally be identified as vessels designed for wheeled or tracked cargo that can load itself on-board through the decks via ramps. Annex III of the notice provides the standards for a US-built vehicle carrier, explaining the domestic content requirements a ship would have to meet to be exempted from the fee.

Definitions

The actions apply to “vessel operators” and “vessel owners,” according to the definitions below:

• “Vessel operator” means the entity identified as the operator of the vessel and whose name would appear on the CBP Vessel Entrance or Clearance Statement (CBP Form 1300 or its electronic equivalent). The operator on the CBP form is the “operator as listed on the Certificate of Financial Responsibility [COFR] (Water Pollution): unless other verifiable charter or lease arrangement indicates otherwise.”10
• “Vessel owner” means the entity identified as the owner of the vessel and whose name would appear on the CBP Vessel Entrance or Clearance Statement (CBP Form 1300 or its electronic equivalent). The CBP form does not provide any specific requirements for the meaning of owner.
• “Vessel owner of China” means any entity that satisfies any of the below conditions, while a “vessel operator of China” means any vessel operator that satisfies any one of the below conditions (which are explained in more detail in Annex I of the notice):
• Identifies its country of citizenship on the CBP Vessel Entrance or Clearance Statement (CBP Form 1300 or its electronic equivalent) as China, Hong Kong, or Macau.
• Whose headquarters, parent entity’s headquarters, or parent entity’s principal place of business is China, Hong Kong, or Macau.
• Is owned by, or controlled by, a citizen or citizens of China, Hong Kong, or Macau.
• Is owned by, controlled by, or subject to the jurisdiction or direction of China, Hong Kong, or Macau.
• Is owned by, or controlled by, an entity listed as a Chinese Military Company.11
• Is an ocean common carrier that is, or whose operating assets are, directly or indirectly, owned or controlled by the government of China or any of its political subdivisions.

Export cargo carriage restrictions for LNG exports (Annex IV)

Through this notice, USTR has required that, beginning on April 17, 2028, licenses for the export of LNG from the United States must require that exporters use US vessels for the maritime transport of a certain percentage of LNG exports.12 First, from April 17, 2028, to April 16, 2029, 1% of US exports must be carried on US-flagged and US-operated vessels. Starting on April 15, 2029, the vessels will also need to be US-built (Annex IV defines the conditions for “US-built”). The share of exports that must be carried on US-built LNG tankers will gradually increase over the ensuing 22 years, until it reaches 15% on April 17, 2047. Vessel operators may receive three-year waivers of the requirement if the operator orders and takes delivery of a US-built LNG vessel of equivalent or greater capacity within those three years.

Any vessel that “is specially designed for the international maritime transport of [LNG]” is only subject to this export rule. As a result, Chinese-built, Chinese-operated, or Chinese-owned LNG tankers would be exempt from any of the vessel fees in Annex I or Annex II.

The notice of action does not fully explain how USTR would implement or enforce this requirement. Annex IV states that LNG terminal operators will need to report the vessels that carry LNG shipments to the US government and that the required percentages will be “determined based on the prior calendar year’s total LNG, expressed in cubic feet, that was exported by maritime transport as reported by the US Department of Energy.” The annex also states that USTR may suspend LNG export licenses if the required thresholds are not met. USTR states that it “will consult with the US Department of Energy and other agencies, as appropriate, to provide notice and further technical information regarding this restriction.”

Proposed tariffs on Chinese ship-to-shore port cranes and cargo handling equipment (Annex V)

USTR’s notice also includes a new notice of proposed action to impose additional tariffs on certain Chinese cargo handling equipment, which was not part of USTR’s original proposed action. The proposal is based on instructions from President Trump’s April 9 executive order on “Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance.”13 In the order, Trump directed USTR to consider imposing tariffs on “ship-to-shore cranes manufactured, assembled, or made using components of PRC origin, or manufactured anywhere in the world by a company owned, controlled, or substantially influenced by a PRC national;” and “on other cargo handling equipment” as part of the Section 301 action.

Tariffs on certain ship-to-port cranes

The USTR notice proposes a 100% tariff on ship-to-shore cranes,14 which would apply to both ship-to-shore cranes of Chinese origin and ship-to-shore cranes manufactured in third countries that include Chinese components or that are linked to Chinese companies.

All importers of ship-to-shore cranes, regardless of country of origin, will have to attest that Chinese-linked entities were not involved in manufacture or installation. If the importer cannot meet these conditions, then the ship-to-shore crane – regardless of its country of origin – will be treated as a Chinese-origin crane for the purpose of the proposed 100% tariff. The specific conditions the importer must certify are:

• “The ship-to-shore crane(s) that was/were entered into the customs territory of the United States at entry were not manufactured, assembled, or made using parts or components from China;”
• “The ship-to-shore crane(s) were not manufactured by a company or other entity that is owned or controlled by a Chinese person or legal entity, or subject to the effective control of a Chinese person or legal entity;”
• “No component or assembly of the ship-to-shore crane(s) transited through, or was stored in, any territory of the People’s Republic of China, including any free trade zone; and”
• “No component, sub-assembly, or assembly of the ship-to-shore crane(s) will be installed by an employee or contractor of a company or other entity that is owned or controlled by a Chinese person or legal entity, or subject to the effective control of a Chinese person or legal entity.”

The “parts or components from China” covered by the requirement are the main boom, the trolley, the spreader, the cabin, the legs, the cable reel, the power supply, the bogie set and wheels and any information technology equipment. Annex V of the USTR notice provides further detail on the relevant definitions and requirements.

The proposal is the latest in a series of actions to reduce US ports’ use of ship-to-shore cranes manufactured in China. A 25% Section 301 tariff is already in place on ship-to-shore cranes from China (with an exception for any ordered prior to May 14, 2024 and imported prior to May 14, 2026).15 USTR imposed the tariff as part of the Biden administration’s September 2024 expansion of the first Trump administration’s 2018 Section 301 tariffs on imports from China. In February 2024, the US Coast Guard also issued directions to port operators to fix cybersecurity vulnerabilities related to computer components in Chinese-built ship-to-shore cranes, and the Biden administration announced plans to invest $20 billion to produce new ship-to-shore cranes domestically.16 USTR’s new proposal appears to stack on the previous tariff, increasing the total Section 301 tariff on ship-to-shore cranes from China to 125%. If USTR continues its practice of stacking the Section 301 tariffs on other tariffs, then the Trump administration’s new 125% reciprocal tariff and 20% fentanyl trade-related tariff would also sum with the Section 301 tariffs for a total tariff of 270% on ship-to-shore cranes from China.

Tariffs on other cargo handling equipment originating in China

USTR also proposes tariffs on certain China-origin cargo handling equipment. Unlike the ship-to-shore crane tariff proposal, these tariffs appear to follow standard rules of origin. USTR’s proposals are:

• A 20% to 100% tariff on Chinese-origin shipping containers (including containers for the transport of fluids) under HTSUS 8609.00.00; and
• A 20% to 100% tariff on Chinese-origin truck chassis and chassis parts under HTSUS 8716.39.0090, 8716.90.30, and 8716.90.50.

Shipping containers (almost all of which are manufactured in China) are not covered by the 2018 Section 301 tariffs but are subject to the 20% fentanyl trade-related tariff and the 125% reciprocal tariff. Chassis and chassis parts from China are subject to a 25% Section 301 tariff under the 2018 action, the 20% fentanyl-trade related tariff, and the 125% reciprocal tariff,17 as well as certain antidumping and countervailing duty actions.

Call for public input

USTR is inviting public comments on the proposed ship-to-shore crane and cargo handling tariffs, with a deadline of May 19.18 Interested stakeholders may submit comments using docket number USTR–2025–0008 on USTR’s docket at comments.ustr.gov. USTR will also hold a public hearing on the proposal on May 19. The deadline for submitting requests to appear at the hearing is May 9. The notice includes additional instructions on how to submit comments and requests to appear at the hearing. USTR is particularly interested in responses that address (i) the product coverage of the proposed tariffs; (ii) the level of the tariff increases; (iii) whether the increased duties should take effect in 180 days, or over a phase-in period of 6 to 24 months; and (iv) whether the action would be practicable or effective to obtain the elimination of China’s acts, policies, and practices. USTR will consider and respond to public comments as it conducts the investigations. Participating in the public comment process can help shape the outcome of the investigation and prompt regulators to further clarify actions. USTR’s responses may also inform any potential legal challenge should a final action be adopted.

Potential for further actions and legislation

Besides the new tariff proposal, USTR references several other hypothetical future actions. In the conclusion of the notice, USTR states it “will continue to consider the proposed actions and possible actions […]” as it “monitor[s] the effects of the trade action and the progress made toward resolution of this matter.” USTR’s February proposed action had included a proposal to prohibit LOGINK (a Chinese government-linked global logistics management and tracking software suite). In the final action, USTR simply notes it “intends to continue to explore responsive actions as to Chinese digital logistics platforms (e.g., LOGINK).” USTR also states it is considering fees on Chinese-built offshore vessels, on which it does not elaborate. USTR will also monitor progress under President Trump’s Maritime Action Plan in assessing the Section 301 actions, “including coordination with allies and partners regarding the actions taken in this investigation and efforts to reduce dependencies on adversaries through capital investments in US shipbuilding and the establishment of a reliable funding source for programs under the Maritime Action Plan.”

Executive Order on “Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance”

President Trump’s April 9 executive order on “Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance” – which established the Maritime Action Plan and endorsed USTR’s proposed vessel restrictions – also proposes several other actions that would affect foreign shipping. The order instructs the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to “take all necessary steps, including proposing new legislation, as permitted by law” to:

• “require all foreign-origin cargo arriving by vessel to clear the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) entry process at a United States port of entry for security and collection of all applicable duties, customs, taxes, fees, interest and other charges;” and
• “ensure any foreign-origin cargo first arriving by vessel to North America clearing the CBP process at an inland location from the country of land transit (Canada or Mexico) is assessed applicable customs, duties, taxes, fees (including the HMF [Harbor Maintenance Fee]), interest and other charges plus a ten percent service fee for additional costs to the CBP, so long as the cargo being shipped into the United States is not substantially transformed from its condition at the time of arrival into the country of land transit (with the discretion for such decisions to be determined by CBP).”

The order’s land border fee proposal appears to be based on concerns that vessel operators will attempt to bypass the new vessel fees by unloading cargo in Canada and Mexico instead of the United States. DHS has not yet issued guidance to implement the executive order’s actions. The executive order also proposes various domestic policy actions to support US shipbuilding and the merchant marine, though most of these proposals would likely require new legislation.

The SHIPS for America Act of 2025

Following the issuance of President Trump’s April 9 executive order and USTR’s final Section 301 notice, supporters in Congress reintroduced a bill that would make permanent measures similar to those proposed by President Trump and also implement measures that would require new law. The bipartisan bill, the “SHIPS for America Act of 2025,” was introduced to the Senate by Sens. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) and Todd Young (R-IN) and to the House of Representatives by Reps. John Garamendi (D-CA) and Trent Kelly (R-MS) on April 30, 2025.19 Among the bill’s proposals are measures that would establish new subsidies and tax credits to fund the US shipbuilding industry, increase the size of the US-flagged international fleet by 250 vessels over 10 years, increase the competitiveness of US vessel flagging rules, require more US government cargo and some shipments from China to be carried on US-built vessels, impose fees on vessels owned or operated by Chinese entities, grant market access preferences and reduced tariff rates to import cargo transported on US vessels, support shipbuilding innovation and support maritime workforce development. The bill incorporates USTR’s Section 301 fees, assigning the revenue collected to a Maritime Security Trust Fund, which help would pay for the bill’s subsidies programs.
Source: White & Case