in effect
This is Executive Order 14198, signed February 3, 2025, by the President. It amends an earlier order (dated February 1, 2025) that had imposed a 25 percent tariff on goods imported from Mexico. Rather than imposing anything new, this order delays that tariff and directs officials to keep monitoring conditions at the southern border.
The additional 25 percent tariff on Mexican goods, originally set to start February 4, 2025, is paused and will not take effect until March 4, 2025, at 12:01 a.m. eastern time. The order does this by replacing the date “February 4, 2025” with “March 4, 2025” in the relevant sections of the earlier order. It also withdraws an earlier exception that had protected goods already loaded onto a vessel or in transit before entering the United States, so that carve-out no longer applies. During the pause, the Secretary of Homeland Security — consulting with the Secretary of State, the Attorney General, and two presidential advisors — is directed to keep assessing the situation. The order states that if conditions worsen and Mexico fails to act sufficiently, the tariffs can be put into effect immediately.
Importers, businesses, and consumers who buy or sell goods produced in Mexico are directly affected, because the tariff that would have raised costs starting February 4 is delayed by about a month. The Government of Mexico is affected, as the pause is tied to steps it has taken and to whether it takes further action. Federal officials named in the order — Homeland Security, State, the Attorney General, and national security advisors — are tasked with the ongoing assessment.