New 25% Tariff on Brazil Takes Effect July 22, 2026: What Importers Need to Know

What Changed and When

The legal path: USTR initiated a Section 301 investigation into Brazil's trade practices on July 15, 2025, at the President's direction. A June 2026 determination found several Brazilian measures — digital trade and electronic payment rules, preferential tariffs, anti-corruption interference, IP protection, ethanol market access, and illegal deforestation — unreasonable and burdensome to US commerce. Following the required comment period and a public hearing, USTR's final action imposes a 25% tariff on goods of Brazil, effective July 22, 2026.

This is a distinct action from the 46-country, 12.5% Section 301 tariff (the forced-labor investigation) with its own July 20 completion deadline — don't confuse the two. Brazil's 25% rate is specific to Brazil and stands on its own legal footing.

What's Exempt — and Where the Reporting Disagrees

USTR's own materials describe exemptions for beef, orange juice, aircraft and aircraft parts, and energy products. Wire coverage of the announcement also named coffee, avocados, and Brazil nuts as excluded. The overlap (beef, aircraft parts, energy/petroleum) is consistent across sources; the rest of the exemption list varies by outlet, which suggests the carve-outs run longer than any single article captured.

Don't assume your product is covered or exempt based on a headline. Before you ship, check the product annex in the Federal Register notice implementing the action, or confirm the applicable HTS subheading with a licensed customs broker.

Does This Stack With Brazil's Existing Section 232 Tariffs?

Brazilian steel and aluminum already pay the 50% Section 232 metals tariff. Whether the new 25% Section 301 duty adds on top of that (as country-specific Section 301 tariffs have stacked with Section 232 for other origins) hasn't been spelled out in CBP guidance as of this writing. Treat 75% combined as the working assumption for Brazilian steel and aluminum articles until CBP publishes stacking instructions, and confirm the final number with your broker before booking a shipment. For non-metal Brazilian goods that aren't otherwise exempt, the new 25% applies on top of the normal MFN rate for that product.

What to Do Before July 22

1. Check your product against the exemption categories (beef, orange juice, aircraft parts, energy products, and possibly coffee/avocados/Brazil nuts) using your HTS code, not the product's common name.
2. Re-run landed cost on anything shipping on or after July 22. Goods that clear before the effective date aren't subject to the new duty; timing your entry date matters if you have flexibility.
3. Flag Brazilian steel/aluminum purchase orders for a stacking check with your broker given the 232 overlap.
4. Watch for Brazilian retaliation. Brazil's government has said it will pursue countermeasures under its own reciprocal-tariff law and raise the matter at the WTO — a response could affect US exporters shipping to Brazil, separate from the import side covered here.