What products does the US import most from Vietnam?

The top US imports from Vietnam include apparel and footwear, furniture and wooden products, electronics and machinery, mobile phones and components, seafood, and rubber products. US goods imports from Vietnam totaled $193.8 billion in 2025.

Tariffs Vietnam Guide Published March 25, 2026 · Updated March 25, 2026 · 9 min read

Import Duty from Vietnam to US in 2026: Tariff Rates & Complete Guide

Q: What is the import duty rate from Vietnam to the US in 2026?

Most Vietnamese goods face a 10% baseline tariff (Section 122) plus the standard HTS duty rate (typically 0–15% depending on the product). Unlike China, Vietnam is not subject to Section 301 tariffs. Total effective duty on most goods is typically 10–25%, significantly lower than Chinese imports.

Q: Is Vietnam subject to Section 301 tariffs?

No. Section 301 tariffs are China-specific and do not apply to Vietnam. However, US Customs actively investigates transshipment — goods manufactured in China but shipped through Vietnam to avoid China tariffs.

Q: How does importing from Vietnam compare to importing from China?

Vietnam is significantly cheaper on tariffs. A typical consumer good from China faces 17.5–35% in combined duties (Section 301 + Section 122). The same good from Vietnam typically faces 10–15% (Section 122 + HTS base rate only). That said, Vietnam's base manufacturing cost is often higher than China's.

Q: What did the US-Vietnam trade deal in 2025 change?

The US negotiated a bilateral trade framework with Vietnam under the former IEEPA reciprocal tariff regime, agreeing on a 20% rate. With IEEPA struck down by the Supreme Court in February 2026, the applicable rate reverted to the standard HTS rates plus the 10% Section 122 baseline.

Q: Does the Section 122 tariff apply to Vietnam?

Yes. The 10% Section 122 baseline tariff enacted on February 24, 2026 applies to imports from virtually all countries, including Vietnam. It is set to expire after 150 days (around July 23, 2026) unless extended.

Vietnam is where a lot of merchants landed after China tariffs got brutal. But "lower than China" isn't a number — you need to know the actual rates, what's changed since the IEEPA ruling, and how to calculate what you'll really pay. That's what this is.

In this guide

Current US Tariff Rates on Vietnamese Goods
Vietnam vs China: A Real Cost Comparison
Duty Rates by Product Category
How to Calculate Your Landed Cost
The Transshipment Problem
Trade History & Recent Changes
Frequently Asked Questions

Current US Tariff Rates on Vietnamese Goods (March 2026)

Good news first: Vietnam is not subject to Section 301 tariffs. That regime is China-only. For most Vietnamese goods, there are two tariff layers:

Tariff Layer	Rate	Status	Applies To
Section 122 (baseline)	10%	Active (expires ~Jul 23, 2026)	Nearly all imports from all countries
HTS Base Rate	0–15%	Permanent	Varies by product category
Section 232 (product-specific)	25–50%	Active (if applicable)	Steel, aluminum, autos, copper only

Source: USITC Harmonized Tariff Schedule; Tax Foundation Tariff Tracker, March 2026.

✅ Bottom line: For most consumer goods from Vietnam — apparel, footwear, furniture, electronics — your effective duty rate in March 2026 is roughly 10–15%. That's the Section 122 plus your HTS base rate. Much better than the 17.5–35% on comparable Chinese goods.

The Section 122 (10%) is temporary — it expires around July 23, 2026. If it lapses and your product has a 0% HTS rate, you'd pay zero duty from Vietnam. Back to pre-tariff-war territory.

Vietnam vs China: A Real Cost Comparison

The real question for anyone considering a supply chain switch. Three common product types, side by side:

Apparel (T-shirts, clothing)

Factor	China	Vietnam
HTS base rate (clothing)	~12%	~12%
Section 301 (China-specific)	7.5% (List 4A)	None
Section 122 (baseline)	10%	10%
Total effective duty	~29.5%	~22%

Consumer Electronics

Factor	China	Vietnam
HTS base rate (electronics)	0–2%	0–2%
Section 301 (China-specific)	7.5% (List 4A)	None
Section 122 (baseline)	10%	10%
Total effective duty	~17.5–19.5%	~10–12%

Furniture

Factor	China	Vietnam
HTS base rate (furniture)	0–5%	0–5%
Section 301 (China-specific)	25% (List 3)	None
Section 122 (baseline)	10%	10%
Total effective duty	~35–40%	~10–15%

Furniture is where the gap really opens up: 20–30 percentage points lower than China. That's why you've seen so many furniture brands make the switch — US goods imports from Vietnam hit $193.8 billion in 2025, up 42% from 2024.

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Duty Rates by Product Category

Vietnam's main export categories to the US and what you're actually paying in March 2026:

Product Category	HTS Base Rate	Section 122	Total Effective Rate
Apparel (cotton, synthetic)	8–32%	10%	18–42%
Footwear	5–20%	10%	15–30%
Furniture, wooden products	0–6%	10%	10–16%
Mobile phones / electronics	0–2%	10%	10–12%
Machinery and equipment	0–4%	10%	10–14%
Seafood (fish, shrimp)	0–5%	10%	10–15%
Rubber and rubber products	2–5%	10%	12–15%
Steel / aluminum products	0–5%	10%	60% (Section 232 applies)

HTS base rates are approximate; exact rates depend on the 10-digit HTS code for your specific product. Verify at hts.usitc.gov.

⚠ Exception: Steel and aluminum from Vietnam
Section 232 tariffs on steel (50%) and aluminum (50%) apply regardless of country of origin. If you're importing steel-intensive products from Vietnam, you still face Section 232. The same applies to automotive parts and copper products.

Why Apparel Rates Are So High

Apparel and footwear have always had high HTS base rates — those protections predate the current trade war by decades. The US textile and footwear industries have had tariff protection since the 1970s. And Vietnam doesn't have a free trade agreement with the US the way Canada and Mexico do, so those base rates apply in full.

Some specialized clothing categories have HTS rates over 30%. Add Section 122 and you're looking at 40%+ duty from Vietnam — not the discount you expected.

How to Calculate Your Landed Cost from Vietnam

Formula: Product cost + Shipping + Insurance + Duty + Customs broker fee = Landed cost. Same as always. Here's what it looks like with real numbers:

You're importing 500 units of furniture from Vietnam. Each unit is $80 FOB, $2,000 in sea freight, $150 in insurance.

Line Item	Amount
Product cost (500 × $80)	$40,000
Sea freight	$2,000
Insurance	$150
CIF Value	$42,150
HTS base rate (furniture ~3%)	$1,264.50
Section 122 (10%)	$4,215
Total Duty	$5,479.50
Customs broker (est.)	$300
Total Landed Cost	$47,929.50
Landed cost per unit	$95.86

Run the same order from China with furniture's 25% Section 301 on top and you'd pay roughly $13,600 more in duty on that same $40,000 order. That's the Vietnam advantage in concrete terms.

💡 Tip: Duty is calculated on CIF (Cost, Insurance, Freight), not just the product cost. Shipping costs inflate your dutiable value, so optimizing your freight can reduce your duty bill. A $500 savings on freight saves you $65 in duty (at 13%).

The Transshipment Problem: What US Customs Watches For

CBP has gotten much more aggressive here. Transshipment — goods made in China, routed through Vietnam to claim a lower-tariff origin — is one of their top enforcement priorities right now.

How CBP catches it:

Country of Origin verification: They can demand full production records, not just proof of the last processing step
Substantial transformation test: Goods must be genuinely transformed in Vietnam — relabeling, minor assembly, or basic cutting of Chinese-made fabric doesn't count
Targeted audit programs: Furniture, apparel, solar panels — CBP runs enforcement operations against high-risk categories
Fines and seizures: Transshipment can mean seized goods, back-duties, and civil penalties up to 4× the unpaid duty

If your Vietnam supplier sources raw materials or semi-finished goods from China, document everything. Goods substantially transformed in Vietnam — cut fabric sewn into a garment, raw components assembled into a finished product — are generally fine. Vietnam as a transit point or minimal processing stop is a problem.

⚠ You're the one on the hook. Legal liability for transshipment falls on the importer of record — that's you, not your supplier. Request factory certifications, ask directly about raw material sourcing, and consider a third-party factory audit if anything seems off.

US-Vietnam Trade History & Recent Changes

Date	Event	Impact on Importers
2001	US-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA)	Normalized trade relations; most goods at standard HTS rates
2007	Vietnam joins WTO	US-Vietnam trade framework formalized
2018–2019	US-China trade war begins	Massive sourcing shift from China to Vietnam begins
Apr 2025	"Liberation Day" IEEPA tariffs	US proposed 46% reciprocal tariff on Vietnam
2025	US-Vietnam bilateral trade deal	Agreed rate reduced to ~20% under IEEPA framework
Feb 20, 2026	Supreme Court strikes down IEEPA	Reciprocal tariffs (incl. Vietnam 20%) invalidated
Feb 24, 2026	Section 122 — 10% baseline tariff	All imports (incl. Vietnam) now pay 10% baseline
~Jul 23, 2026	Section 122 expires (150 days)	Baseline may drop to zero for Vietnam (no FTA needed)

IEEPA getting struck down was actually a good outcome for Vietnam specifically. The proposed 46% reciprocal tariff would've erased most of Vietnam's tariff advantage over China. Instead, Vietnam now sits at 10% Section 122 plus standard HTS rates — workable.

The US-Vietnam Trade Deficit

The US-Vietnam goods trade deficit hit $178.2 billion in 2025 — up 44% from 2024 — driven by the rush to move supply chains out of China. That deficit is exactly why Vietnam got targeted by the IEEPA tariff regime in the first place. Whether future administrations come after Vietnam again is a real risk worth keeping an eye on.

Total US goods imports from Vietnam were $193.8 billion in 2025, making Vietnam the second-largest import partner after China in several product categories, per USTR data.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is the import duty rate from Vietnam to the US in 2026?

Most Vietnamese goods face a 10% Section 122 baseline plus your standard HTS rate (typically 0–15% depending on the product). Total effective duty for most goods is 10–25% — well below the 17.5–35%+ on comparable Chinese imports. Exception: steel and aluminum still face Section 232 (50%) regardless of where they come from.

Q: Is Vietnam subject to Section 301 tariffs?

No. Section 301 is China-specific. Goods that genuinely originate in Vietnam aren't subject to it. But CBP actively investigates transshipment, and the importer of record — you — is legally responsible for accurate country-of-origin claims.

Q: How does importing from Vietnam compare to importing from China?

Cheaper on tariffs, usually. A Chinese consumer good typically faces 17.5–35% in combined duties. Same product from Vietnam is usually 10–15%. Furniture is where the gap is biggest: 35–40% from China versus 10–15% from Vietnam. That said, Vietnam's base manufacturing cost is generally higher than China's, so the net landed cost advantage varies by product. Model both before switching.

Q: What did the US-Vietnam trade deal in 2025 change?

The US and Vietnam agreed to ~20% under the IEEPA framework. When the Supreme Court struck down IEEPA on February 20, 2026, that deal became void. Vietnam reverted to standard HTS rates plus the 10% Section 122 — which was actually a better outcome for importers than the negotiated rate.

Q: Does the Section 122 tariff apply to Vietnam?

Yes. The 10% Section 122 baseline enacted February 24, 2026 applies to imports from virtually all countries, including Vietnam. It's set to expire after 150 days — around July 23, 2026 — unless extended or replaced.

Q: If I'm sourcing from Vietnam to avoid China tariffs, what documentation should I keep?

A lot. Full production records showing substantial transformation in Vietnam: raw material invoices, factory records, bills of materials, production photos or video, and a Certificate of Origin from the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI). The CO alone isn't enough — CBP goes deeper than that in audits.

Q: I'm a Shopify merchant thinking of switching suppliers to Vietnam. Is there a tool to compare costs?

Our free duty calculator lets you compare duty rates across multiple origin countries side-by-side. For Shopify merchants managing inventory from different suppliers, TariffShield connects to your store and tracks how tariff rates affect your margins across every product — weekly digest included.

Sources

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Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, or customs advice. Tariff rates change frequently. Always verify current rates with US Customs and Border Protection or a licensed customs broker before making sourcing or import decisions. Rates in this article are accurate as of March 25, 2026.