July 27, 2026
 

US imposes Section 301 forced labour tariffs on shrimp imports from all top ten supplying nations

Vietnam, Thailand, Peru and China face a 10% additional duty, while India receives a reduced rate of 10% after adopting a domestic prohibition on goods produced with forced labour.

The United States Trade Representative (USTR) has announced additional tariffs on imported shrimp in all product forms from every major supplying nation, as part of a Section 301 investigation into forced labour practices, with rates of 10% applied to India, Ecuador, Indonesia, Argentina, Mexico and Canada, and 12.5% applied to Vietnam, Thailand, Peru and China.

The tariffs cover the ten largest shrimp exporters to the US market by value in 2025, ranked as India, Ecuador, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, Argentina, Mexico, Canada, Peru and China. The USTR rejected requests from importers to exempt seafood products from the scope of the additional duties, dismissing arguments that the US domestic industry is unable to meet all of domestic demand and that the market is dependent on imports.

India was granted a reduced rate of 10% rather than the initially proposed 12.5% after the Indian government adopted legislation prohibiting the importation of goods produced with forced labour following the initiation of the Section 301 investigation. The USTR cited this as evidence that the threat of market access restrictions can drive regulatory improvements in exporting countries.

Blake Price, Executive Director of the Southern Shrimp Alliance, said the action demonstrated the US administration's commitment to combatting unfair trade practices. "With India's adoption of a prohibition on the importation of goods produced through forced labour, the Section 301 action on forced labour has already proven that access to our market can be leveraged to improve conditions overseas," Price said.

The new duties come on top of existing anti-dumping and countervailing duties already applied to shrimp imports from several of the affected countries, and compound pressure on exporters already navigating tighter US antibiotic residue controls and traceability requirements introduced earlier in 2026. For Vietnam, the 12.5% Section 301 duty adds to an anti-dumping rate of 25.76% imposed on mandatory respondents in the most recent administrative review, as well as a 10% Section 122 tariff that took effect in February 2026.

- Southern Shrimp Alliance