Clothing from India: 26.5% US Tariff (2026)
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The Supreme Court struck down the 2025 IEEPA tariffs and a $166B refund pool is open. See your personalized refund opportunity & filing roadmap.
Illustrative analysis only — not legal, tax, or customs advice. Eligibility and amounts are determined by CBP; filing is handled by licensed professionals.
IEEPA refunds — illustrative, not a personal claim
Paid IEEPA duty on imports of Clothing from India in 2025–early 2026?
The Supreme Court struck down IEEPA reciprocal (and fentanyl/trafficking) tariffs on February 20, 2026. The Importer of Record — or the licensed broker who filed the original entries — can seek that IEEPA layer back through CBP’s CAPE process. This is not a consumer check, and it is not a guaranteed amount.
- Who can file: the original Importer of Record (or that entry’s filing broker), not the retail customer.
- Window: IEEPA duties collected from early 2025 through February 24, 2026 (reciprocal rates generally from April 2025; China/Canada/Mexico fentanyl layers started earlier).
- Not refundable: Section 232 (steel/aluminum/autos), China Section 301, MFN base duty, or the current Section 301 forced-labor tariff / EU 15% deal rate.
Illustrative example only: $50,000 of IEEPA-period imports of Clothing from India at the published 18% IEEPA rate carried about $9,000 of IEEPA duty. That IEEPA layer — plus statutory interest (6–7% compounded daily under 19 CFR 24.36) — is what CAPE can refund. Your actual figure comes from your 7501s, not this example.
Have not filed
Only the Importer of Record can claim the IEEPA layer through CAPE.
How to claim an IEEPA refundAlready filed
Status is in ACE (REV-615), not a shopping-site tracker.
Check CAPE status · When money arrivesOverview on the tariff-refunds hub. Phase 3 for finally liquidated entries launches October 6, 2026 for CIT plaintiffs only. Illustrative analysis — not a guaranteed amount.
Contingency filing via Tariff Recovery Today (powered by Irongate), in partnership with Master Plan. No recovery, no fee. Not legal advice.
India is a growing source of clothing imports to the United States, with particular strength in cotton garments, silk products, and embroidered or hand-crafted textiles. The current total tariff rate is 26.5%.
The tariff breakdown: 16.5% MFN base rate (average for HTS chapters 61-62) plus the 10% Section 301 forced-labor tariff (which replaced the 10% Section 122 rate on July 24, 2026 — India is in the 10% tier, so the total is unchanged). Before the SCOTUS ruling, India faced the 26% IEEPA reciprocal tariff on top of the MFN rate, totaling approximately 42.5%. The ruling reduced that component from 26% to 10% Section 122, saving about 16 percentage points.
India's clothing exports to the US are concentrated in several categories: cotton basics and casual wear, embroidered and decorated garments, silk and silk-blend clothing, traditional textiles adapted for Western markets, and uniforms and workwear. India's strength in natural fibers (cotton, silk, linen) differentiates it from synthetic-focused manufacturers in Vietnam and China.
At 26.5%, India's rate is identical to Bangladesh and just below Vietnam's 29%, and significantly lower than China's 36.5%. However, Mexico at 0% (USMCA) remains far cheaper for qualifying goods. India's competitive advantages include lower labor costs than China, strong cotton textile infrastructure, and specialization in hand-embellished and artisanal garments that command premium prices where the tariff percentage has less impact on the final retail margin.
India's government has been actively promoting textile exports through production-linked incentive schemes and textile parks. The Mega Integrated Textile Region (MITRA) parks aim to boost India's share of global apparel manufacturing. For US importers, this means improving quality, capacity, and reliability.
On the base layer, the 10% Section 122 rate expired July 24, 2026 and was replaced by the Section 301 forced-labor tariff — India is in the 10% tier, so its total is unchanged at 26.5%. In August 2026, 25 states sued at the Court of International Trade to block the forced-labor tariff, but CBP continues collecting it while the case proceeds; new Section 301 investigations could also target India. India-US trade negotiations are ongoing but no comprehensive FTA is expected in the near term.
Clothing Tariffs by Country: Where It’s Cheapest to Import in 2026
India ranks #10 of 12 major clothing sources by effective US tariff. Cheapest first — click any country for its full breakdown.
| Source country | 2026 rate | vs. India |
|---|---|---|
| Canada | 0% | 26.5 pts cheaper |
| Mexico | 0% | 26.5 pts cheaper |
| South Korea | 10% | 16.5 pts cheaper |
| Indonesia | 13.4% | 13.1 pts cheaper |
| Philippines | 15.9% | 10.6 pts cheaper |
| Thailand | 15.9% | 10.6 pts cheaper |
| Turkey | 15.9% | 10.6 pts cheaper |
| Italy | 16.5% | 10 pts cheaper |
| Bangladesh | 26.5% | same |
| India (this page) | 26.5% | — |
| Vietnam | 29% | +2.5 pts |
| China | 36.5% | +10 pts |
Effective 2026 rates for typical goods in this category (MFN base + the Section 301 forced-labor tariff that replaced Section 122 on July 24, 2026, plus Section 301/232 where they apply). Your exact duty depends on the specific HTS code — Canada is currently the lowest-tariff major source at 0%. Tariffs are one input; weigh freight, lead time, and quality too.
Calculate Your Clothing Duty from India
Search by product name or HTS code — the same lookup as the HTS code finder, then we stack 2026 country layers. Prefer a category estimate? .
Duty is calculated on this amount. Add freight and fees below for an estimated total import cost.
Add freight and fees (estimated landed cost)
Optional. Freight, insurance, and other fees are your estimates — not a quote. MPF and HMF below are formula estimates from published CBP rates, not a guarantee.
Frequently Asked Questions
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