in effect
Executive Order 14345, signed September 4, 2025, implements a trade framework agreement reached between the United States and Japan on July 22, 2025. It sets new tariff rules for Japanese imports and creates special treatment for certain sectors, replacing prior tariff levels that had been imposed under earlier emergency trade actions.
Most Japanese goods entering the U.S. will now face a combined tariff rate of exactly 15 percent — if a product’s existing duty was already 15 percent or higher, no additional tariff is added; if it was lower, the gap is made up to reach 15 percent. Japanese civil aerospace products (excluding drones) are exempted from all reciprocal, aluminum, steel, and copper tariffs once the Commerce Department publishes a formal notice in the Federal Register. Automobiles and auto parts from Japan follow the same 15 percent floor formula, replacing the higher Section 232 duties previously in place. The Commerce Secretary may reduce tariffs to zero for Japanese natural resources not produced in sufficient quantities in the U.S., as well as for generic pharmaceuticals and their ingredients. These new tariff rates apply retroactively to goods imported on or after August 7, 2025, meaning importers who paid higher duties after that date are entitled to refunds.
U.S. importers of Japanese goods — including car dealers, parts manufacturers, pharmaceutical distributors, and industrial buyers — will see their duty costs recalculated under the new 15 percent floor structure, with some eligible for retroactive refunds. Japanese exporters and industries selling into the U.S. market, particularly automakers and aerospace suppliers, face a new and in many cases lower tariff regime, while American agricultural producers, manufacturers, and defense contractors stand to benefit from the expanded market-access and investment commitments Japan agreed to make.