Here is a recap of the latest customs and international trade law news:        

Customs and Border Protection (CBP)   

• The first reciprocal tariff refunds will be issued on or around May 11, according to a summary of a closed CIT conference between CBP and Judge Eaton.  
• CBP officers in Chicago intercepted a monkey carcass and 125 pounds of prohibited ruminant meat. 
• CBP issued an extension of emergency import restrictions on some archaeological and ethnological material from Afghanistan, effective April 28, 2026.  

Department of Commerce 

• Commerce published a Federal Register notice adding a duty-free code in the HTSUS to cover goods subject to the Section 232 aluminum, steel, or copper tariff regimes that do not, in fact, contain these metals.  This new provision applies retroactively to April 6, 2026, 

United States Trade Representative (USTR)   

• USTR held a Section 301 review hearing to determine what burden on U.S. commerce resulted from other countries failing to keep goods made with forced labor out of their markets. 
• USTR is seeking public comments on recommendations to modernize the African Growth and Opportunity Act. Recommendations will focus […]
  

Here is a recap of the latest customs and international trade news:     

Administration 

• President Trump said that he will impose 50% tariffs on any country that sells military weapons to Iran. 
• President Trump said that the U.S. will consider tariff and sanctions relief for Iran as it negotiates an end to the war.  

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) 

• CBP released a new Harmonized System Update containing over 500 Automated Broker Interface records and 116 Harmonized Tariff Schedule records, including updates to 232 duties on aluminum, steel, and copper imports. 
• CBP and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) seized nearly 350,000 batteries that did not comply with child protective packaging standards. 

Court of International Trade (CIT) 

• The lead plaintiff in the IEEPA refund case filed a notice of dismissal in its case at the CIT on April 6. Shortly after, Judge Eaton lifted the stay on another IEEPA refund case filed by importer Euro-Notions Florida, and reissued his order requiring CBP to pay IEEPA refunds for all unliquidated, not finally liquidated, and finally liquidated entries.  

Department of Labor (DOL) 

• DOL

Supreme Court  

• On February 20, 2026, the Supreme Court issued its opinion in Learning Resources, Inc., et al. v. Trump, ruling that IEEPA does not authorize the president to impose tariffs. 

Administration 

• In response to the Supreme Court’s IEEPA ruling, President Trump issued a Proclamation imposing a 10% tariff on all goods under Section 122 of the Trade Act. The President also announced that he will be increasing it to the lawful maximum of 15%, but the effective date has not yet been set. 
• President Trump signed an Executive Order continuing the suspension of duty-free de minimis treatment for all countries. 
• The U.S. and Bangladesh released a joint statement on reciprocal trade. The U.S. is lowering the tariffs on Bangladeshi exports to 19% rather than the 20%. The U.S. will also establish a mechanism for a tariff rate quota for Bangladeshi textile and apparel imports, with goods coming in under the quota entering duty-free.  
• President Trump announced on Truth Social that the U.S.’s trade deal with Japan is moving forward and that Japan will make its first set of investments under its $550 billion dollar commitment. 

Here is a recap of the latest customs and international trade news:    

Administration  

• Via a post on X, President Trump threatened to block the opening of a second bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Canada, “until the United States is fully compensated for everything we have given.”   
• The Trump administration is reportedly considering tariff exemptions for major U.S. hyperscalers involved in construction of data centers needed for AI.
• The U.S. and Bangladesh released a joint statement on reciprocal trade. The U.S. is lowering the tariffs on Bangladeshi exports to 19% rather than the 20%. The U.S. will also establish a mechanism for a tariff rate quota for Bangladeshi textile and apparel imports, with goods coming in under the quota entering duty-free. 

Customs and Border Protection (CBP)  

• CBP’s base metals Center of Excellence and Expertise (CEE) released updated guidance for calculating steel, aluminum and copper content for Section 232 tariff purposes. 
• UFLPA Enforcement Statistics Dashboard update: in the previous dashboard, a shipment was defined as an aggregate of the totality of goods subjected to UFLPA enforcement actions. Now, a shipment is now defined as an individual import transaction within a shipment entry or customs declaration. This […]
  

Here is a recap of the latest customs and international trade news:    

Administration 

• Via a Truth Social Post, President Trump announced that after speaking with Indian Prime Minister Modi, the U.S. will drop reciprocal tariffs on India from 25% to 18%. 
• During a meeting at the State Department, Vice President Vance said that the U.S. is seeking to organize a preferential trade zone for critical minerals. 

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) 

• CBP announced a new and improved Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) Enforcement Statistics Dashboard that provides a more detailed view of CBP’s enforcement actions.  
• CBP issued a Withhold Release Order against coffee harvested by Finca Monte Grande, a Mexican coffee farm. Effective immediately, CBP at all U.S. ports of entry will detain coffee harvested by Finca Monte Grande. 

Department of Commerce 

• A new antidumping and countervailing duty action has been filed against certain fatty acids from Indonesia and Malaysia. The allegation is that imports from Indonesia and Malaysia are unfairly subsidized and are being dumped. 

United States Trade Representative (USTR) 

• U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer joined Guatemala’s Minister of Economy Adriana Gabriela Garcia in signing the United States–Guatemala Agreement on […]
  

Here is a recap of the latest customs and international trade news: 

Administration 

• President Trump withdrew his threat of tariffs on European allies over Greenland, citing a productive meeting with the Secretary General of NATO. 
• In his speech at Davos, President Trump briefly touched on trade, mentioning the tariffs he imposed on Switzerland. 
• In a speech at the White House, President Trump reiterated the Administration’s position that if the Supreme Court rules against them in the IEEPA case, they will use another tool to impose tariffs. The President suggested licenses as a possible alternative. 
• Speaking to reporters, President Trump threatened a 200% tariff on French goods if French President Macron does not join Trump’s Board of Peace. The Board is expected to oversee the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza. 

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) 

• CBP released new data on UFLPA enforcement. In FY26 Q1 (Oct – Dec 2025), CBP flagged 721 shipments, valued at $69.16 million, for potential violations. 
• CBP launched its new Forced Labor Portal. All review requests for shipments detained or excluded for forced labor enforcement must now be submitted through […]
  

Here is a recap of the latest customs and international trade news:

Congress

• After 43 days of halted operations, the United States federal government reopened on November 12, 2025. The funding bill, approved by the Senate on November 10 and by the House later that day. The bill funds most government operations through January 30, 2026.
• U.S. House Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, the ranking member of the House Select Committee on China, wrote a letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick asking a series of pointed questions about the Administration’s decision to resume chip exports from Nexperia’s China factory.
• All members of Arkansas’ Congressional delegation sent a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. The letter urges the agency to delay implementation of the new U.S.-EU trade deal until the EU revises its deforestation reporting requirements, claiming the requirements would harm American timber exports.

Administration 

• President Trump announced trade deals with El Salvador, Argentina, Ecuador, and Guatemala. As part of the deal, the U.S. is eliminating 15% tariffs on Ecuadoran bananas and cocoa, and 10% tariffs on Guatemalan coffee and Argentinian beef.
• In an interview with Fox News, President Trump said that there will be upcoming “surgical” reductions to reciprocal tariffs. When […]