U.S. proposes 25% tariffs on Brazilian imports

The Office of the United States Trade Representative has proposed 25% tariffs on many imports from Brazil following a Section 301 investigation into the country’s trade and regulatory practices. The proposal, announced in early June, responds to findings that Brazilian policies are "unreasonable and burden or restrict U.S. commerce."

According to the USTR, the measures are intended to address a broad range of concerns rather than a single sector or product line. The new tariffs would apply to a wide set of Brazilian goods, while explicitly carving out several sensitive or strategically important categories.

The proposed 25% duties would exclude a number of imports from Brazil. Products specifically cited as exempt include beef, coffee, rare earth minerals, certain other metals and aircraft parts. These exclusions indicate that some major Brazilian export sectors would not be directly affected by the new measure.

The USTR also stated that the 25% tariff would not apply to Brazilian goods already subject to existing U.S. national-security tariffs under Section 232. Those existing measures include 50% duties on steel, aluminum and copper, 25% duties on finished products made from those metals, and 25% duties on motor vehicles and auto parts.

The Section 301 investigation identified several areas where Brazilian practices were judged to harm U.S. commercial interests. These include digital trade rules, treatment of electronic payment services, preferential tariff treatment for certain partners, and protection of intellectual property.

The USTR also pointed to ethanol market access and illegal deforestation as key concerns. Collectively, these issues formed the basis for the finding that Brazil’s policies are "unreasonable" and impose burdens or restrictions on U.S. commerce.

The trade office has opened the proposal to public scrutiny. It invited written comments on the proposed tariffs through July 1 and scheduled a public hearing for July 6 to gather additional feedback from stakeholders.

Under the Section 301 process, the USTR faces a July 15 deadline for taking responsive action. That timeline frames when a final decision on whether and how to implement the proposed 25% tariffs must be made.

The current proposal would partially replace an earlier package of duties on Brazilian goods imposed last year. Those prior measures had included a 50% tariff and a 40% penalty linked to Brazil’s prosecution of former president Jair Bolsonaro.

In February, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down that earlier set of tariffs and penalties. The newly proposed 25% duties are described as a partial replacement within the framework of the Section 301 investigation.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the Section 301 investigation into Brazil was launched at the direction of U.S. President Donald Trump. The proposal therefore reflects a policy initiative of the Trump administration focused on Brazil’s trade and regulatory practices.