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Section 232 Steel & Metals Guide Published March 24, 2026 · Updated March 24, 2026 · 10 min read

Section 232 Tariffs Explained: Steel, Aluminum, Autos, and Copper in 2026

Steel, aluminum, auto parts, copper — if any of those are on your import list, Section 232 is probably your biggest tariff surprise right now. Not because the rules are complicated, but because these tariffs stack on top of everything else and most importers don't catch it until their landed cost comes in 30% higher than budgeted. Here's what the rates actually are in 2026 and what it means for your numbers.

In this guide

What Are Section 232 Tariffs?

Section 232 tariffs are import duties imposed by the President under the authority of Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. The legal trigger is a national security finding — specifically, that the US isn't producing enough of a strategic material domestically to cover defense and core industry needs.

And here's the part that catches a lot of importers off guard: Section 232 is not country-specific. When these tariffs apply to steel, they apply to steel from Germany, Japan, Canada, Brazil, and China alike. China still gets hit hardest because Section 232 stacks on top of China-specific duties — but if you're sourcing steel from Europe, you're paying Section 232 too.

The Legal Basis (and Why It Survived the Supreme Court)

Pay attention here. In February 2026, the Supreme Court struck down IEEPA tariffs — the "Liberation Day" tariffs from Learning Resources v. Trump — and that ruling invalidated a whole layer of duties some importers were scrambling to plan around.

Section 232 survived that ruling completely untouched. They're based on a different statute, with a different procedural path (a required Commerce Department investigation, a written national security finding, then a Presidential determination). Courts have given Section 232 strong deference for decades. The 2026 ruling was about IEEPA authority specifically — it said nothing about Section 232.

Bottom line: Section 232 tariffs aren't going anywhere. The Supreme Court ruling that killed IEEPA tariffs doesn't touch Section 232 at all. They're two completely separate legal tools.

How a Section 232 Tariff Gets Imposed

The process:

  1. The Secretary of Commerce investigates whether a specific import category threatens national security
  2. If a threat is found, the Commerce Secretary submits a report to the President
  3. The President has 90 days to decide whether to act and what action to take (tariff, quota, other measures)
  4. Once imposed, the tariff takes effect — no congressional approval needed

That last part matters. Section 232 is one of the most powerful unilateral trade tools any US president has. Unlike Section 301 (which requires USTR investigations and formal comment periods), Section 232 can happen fast.

Current Section 232 Rates (2026)

Here's where things stand as of March 2026:

Product Category Section 232 Rate Effective Date HTS Chapters
Steel and steel products 50% March 2025 (raised from 25%) Ch. 72, 73
Aluminum and aluminum products 50% March 2025 (raised from 10%) Ch. 76
Automobiles and light vehicle parts 25% April 2025 Ch. 87 (select)
Copper and copper products 50% 2025 Ch. 74
Heavy trucks, buses, and parts ~25% 2025 Ch. 87 (select)
Furniture and kitchen cabinets ~25% 2025 Ch. 94
Lumber and wood products ~25% 2025 Ch. 44

Source: Tax Foundation: 2026 Trump Tariffs & Trade War Tracker, March 2026.

⚠ Steel and aluminum importers take note: The original Section 232 rates were 25% on steel and 10% on aluminum, first imposed in 2018. Both got roughly doubled in March 2025. If your landed cost models haven't been updated since then, they're wrong — by a lot.

How Section 232 Stacks with Other Tariffs

This is where it actually hurts. Section 232 tariffs don't replace other tariffs — they pile on top. The US is running three major tariff layers at once right now:

Tariff Layer Rate Who It Applies To
Section 122 (10% baseline) 10% Nearly all imports, all countries (expires ~July 23, 2026)
Section 301 (China tariffs) 7.5–25% Chinese imports only, varies by HTS code
Section 232 (product-specific) 25–50% Steel, aluminum, autos, copper — all countries

The Math: What This Actually Costs You

Three scenarios that most importers run into:

🏭 STEEL from China (HTS 7208)
Section 232 (steel)     = 50%
Section 122 (baseline)  = 10%
Section 301 (China)     = 25%
Total duty rate         = 85%
🚗 AUTO PARTS from China (HTS 8708)
Section 232 (autos)     = 25%
Section 122 (baseline)  = 10%
Section 301 (China)     = 25%
Total duty rate         = 60%
🔩 ALUMINUM from Germany (HTS 7604)
Section 232 (aluminum)  = 50%
Section 122 (baseline)  = 10%
Section 301             = N/A (not China)
Total duty rate         = 60%

⚠ Sourcing math worth running: Steel from Germany hits 60% combined. Steel from China hits 85%. If you're sourcing steel or aluminum from China, model costs from Germany, Japan, or South Korea — even with their Section 232 exposure, the numbers can work out better.

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Which Products Are Affected

Most people hear "steel tariffs" and think raw coils at the port. But Section 232 reaches much further than that — here's what's actually covered:

Steel and Steel Products (HTS Chapters 72–73)

The 50% rate covers a huge range — not just raw coils and billets, but downstream manufactured goods too:

If your product is made primarily of steel — finished consumer good or not — it may fall under these chapters. HTS classification determines it, not just the material.

Aluminum and Aluminum Products (HTS Chapter 76)

The 50% aluminum tariff covers:

This hits packaging manufacturers, construction product importers, auto parts sellers, and electronics housing importers hard. But classification matters here: a camera body made of aluminum is classified in HTS Chapter 90, not Chapter 76 — so it doesn't get the aluminum tariff. HTS classification is everything.

Automobiles and Auto Parts (HTS Chapter 87)

The 25% Section 232 tariff on autos applies to:

This is a significant cost shock for ecommerce sellers importing aftermarket auto parts from Taiwan, South Korea, or China. Stack a 25% Section 232 tariff on top of Section 301 and Section 122, and you're looking at a 60% combined rate on Chinese-origin auto parts.

Copper (HTS Chapter 74)

The 50% copper tariff applies broadly to:

Electrical contractors, plumbing suppliers, HVAC wholesalers — this one catches a lot of people off guard. And note: Chile, the world's largest copper producer, faces the same 50% rate as China. If you were thinking Chilean copper was a workaround, it's not.

Other Affected Categories

Category Rate Key Products
Heavy trucks and buses ~25% Vehicles over 5 tonnes GVW, commercial bus bodies
Furniture ~25% Wood furniture, upholstered seating, metal furniture
Kitchen cabinets ~25% Ready-to-assemble and custom kitchen cabinetry
Lumber and wood ~25% Softwood lumber, engineered wood products

Economic Impact

The Tax Foundation's March 2026 analysis is the most thorough accounting of Section 232's economic effects I've seen. The numbers are worth knowing:

Jobs and Employment

Section 232 tariffs cost the US economy 154,000 full-time equivalent jobs in the long run, per Tax Foundation conventional scoring. Broken down:

And these aren't job losses in, say, steel mills. They come from downstream manufacturers — the people who use steel and aluminum as inputs. Higher input costs make them less competitive globally. That's where the employment hit lands.

GDP Impact

Section 232 tariffs reduce long-run US GDP by 0.2% in Tax Foundation modeling. That sounds small. On a $28 trillion economy it's roughly $56 billion in permanently lower economic output every year.

Revenue

On revenue: Section 232 tariffs are projected to raise $635 billion over 2026–2035 on conventional scoring. Dynamic scoring — which accounts for the economic contraction those tariffs cause — would show a lower net figure.

Source: Tax Foundation, "2026 Trump Tariffs & Trade War by the Numbers", March 2026.

The honest summary: Section 232 protects domestic steel, aluminum, and auto producers, and it does generate real government revenue. But it costs downstream manufacturers and consumers more than it saves. Economists have been writing about this exact trade-off for decades. None of that changes your duty bill, but it's useful context.

Exemptions and Exclusions Process

Section 232 tariffs aren't absolute — there's an official exclusion process. It's slow and the outcomes aren't guaranteed, but it's worth knowing about.

Country-Level Exemptions (Quota-Based)

Some countries negotiated quota-based exemptions — zero Section 232 tariffs up to a specified volume. Countries with active arrangements:

Once a country's quota fills for the year, you're back to the full rate. Quotas are tracked and posted by the Department of Commerce. Check before you commit to an order.

Product-Level Exclusions

Individual importers can file for product-specific exclusions by demonstrating:

  1. The specific product isn't produced domestically in sufficient quantity, quality, or on a timely basis
  2. The national security rationale doesn't apply to this particular product
  3. Domestic industry has no objection — or any objections can be rebutted

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) manages the exclusion process. Key things to know:

⚠ File early: The retroactive refund provision is genuinely valuable — but it only works if you filed before the entry was liquidated (typically 314 days after entry). Don't wait to be certain you'll win. File as soon as you think you might qualify.

General Authorized Exclusions (GAEs)

The Commerce Department has also issued "General Authorized Exclusions" — pre-approved exclusions for specific HTS codes that don't require individual petitions. If your HTS code is on the GAE list, you can import tariff-free without filing anything. Check the current GAE list on the BIS website before you pay Section 232 duties. You may be overpaying right now and not know it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Are Section 232 tariffs permanent?
No expiration date. They stay in effect until the President modifies or revokes them, or Congress passes legislation overriding them. Section 122 tariffs expire after 150 days. Section 232 doesn't work that way. The original steel tariffs were first imposed in March 2018 — they're now in their eighth year with no sign of going anywhere.
Q: Do Section 232 tariffs apply to products made with steel or aluminum — or only raw materials?
It depends on HTS classification, not just what the product is made of. If your finished product classifies under HTS Chapter 72 or 73 (steel) or Chapter 76 (aluminum), it faces the tariff. A steel-frame bicycle classified under Chapter 87 gets the auto tariff (if applicable) or nothing — not the steel tariff. Same product, different classification, completely different duty outcome. This is why getting your HTS codes right matters so much.
Q: My supplier is offering to ship through a third country to avoid Section 232. Is that legal?
No. And it's serious. Country of origin for tariff purposes is where the product was substantially transformed — not where it was last shipped from. Routing Chinese steel through Vietnam and declaring it Vietnamese-origin is customs fraud. Seizure of goods, large penalties, criminal charges — CBP actively investigates transshipment schemes, especially for steel and aluminum. Don't do it.
Q: I import auto parts from Taiwan, not China. Do I still pay Section 232?
Yes. Section 232 automotive tariffs (25%) apply to all countries — Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Germany, China, all of them. What you avoid with Taiwan sourcing is the Section 301 tariff, which is China-only. So Taiwan auto parts: 25% (Section 232) + 10% (Section 122) = 35% total. Chinese auto parts: 25% (Section 232) + 10% (Section 122) + 25% (Section 301) = 60% total. Taiwan sourcing saves you 25 percentage points. That's real money.
Q: The steel tariff went from 25% to 50%. When exactly did that happen?
March 2018: 25% steel tariff and 10% aluminum tariff imposed under the first Trump administration. March 2025: both rates escalated — steel to 50%, aluminum to 50%. If your landed cost models predate March 2025, they're underestimating your actual duty exposure by a wide margin.
Q: Can the Supreme Court strike down Section 232 tariffs the way it struck down IEEPA tariffs?
Trade law experts generally view Section 232 as sitting on firmer legal ground than IEEPA tariffs. Section 232 has an established procedural framework — mandatory Commerce investigation, written findings, Presidential determination — and courts have given it strong deference for decades. The February 2026 IEEPA ruling was narrowly about IEEPA authority. It didn't address Section 232, which has its own statute and legal history. Prior challenges to Section 232 haven't succeeded at the Supreme Court level.
Q: As a Shopify store owner importing metal products, what should I do right now?
Three things: (1) Audit your HTS codes — confirm which Section 232 rates actually apply to each product. Misclassification can mean overpaying or underpaying, both of which are problems. (2) Recalculate your landed costs with current rates — Section 232 + Section 122 + Section 301 as applicable. Your margins are probably not what your spreadsheet says. (3) File exclusion requests if you think you qualify — the retroactive refund provision makes it worth doing even under uncertainty. Use our free duty calculator to model the current rates for your products.

Sources

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Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal or tax advice. Tariff rates change frequently. Always verify current rates with US Customs and Border Protection or a licensed customs broker before making import decisions. Rates in this article reflect publicly available information as of March 24, 2026.