Column 1 vs Column 2

These are the two duty-rate columns printed against every product line in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). Column 1 is the normal-trade-relations rate, better known as the MFN (Most-Favored-Nation) rate, and it applies to the vast majority of trading partners; it is itself split into a 'General' sub-column and a 'Special' sub-column that lists the free or reduced rates available under free-trade agreements and preference programs. Column 2 is the punitive statutory rate left over from the 1930 Smoot-Hawley tariff and applies only to countries the U.S. has NOT granted normal trade relations — as of 2026 that means Russia, Belarus, Cuba, and North Korea. For example, a product might carry a 3% General (Column 1) rate but a 35% Column 2 rate, so identical goods can be taxed roughly ten times higher purely because of country of origin. This matters because an importer who sources from a Column 2 country faces a base duty far above the MFN rate, and that base rate is then the foundation on which additional Section 232, Section 301, and reciprocal tariffs stack — making origin verification a first-order cost decision, not a formality.