100% Section 232 pharma tariff reaches every other company on September 29
Proclamation 11020 put a 100% Section 232 duty on imported patented pharmaceuticals and their ingredients. It started on July 31, 2026 for the companies listed in Annex III and reaches every other company on September 29, 2026. Generics and biosimilars are not covered.
What this affects
European Union
Japan
South Korea
Switzerland
United KingdomThe update
Proclamation 11020 of April 2, 2026 imposes a 100% ad valorem duty on imports of patented pharmaceuticals and associated pharmaceutical ingredients identified in Annex I. The proclamation cites reliance on foreign production, noting that only 15 percent of patented active pharmaceutical ingredients by volume are produced domestically for the U.S. market.
The rate is tiered. Products of Japan, the European Union, the Republic of Korea, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein jointly pay 15 percent under existing trade deals. Products of the United Kingdom were set at 10 percent and then reduced to zero on July 31, 2026 under the U.S.-U.K. pharmaceutical pricing agreement, which this tracker covered separately. Companies with a Commerce-approved plan to onshore production pay 20 percent, rising to 100 percent on April 2, 2030. Companies with the company-specific agreements listed in Annex II keep the zero rate those agreements provide.
The duties took effect at 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on July 31, 2026 for the companies listed in Annex III and apply to all other companies from September 29, 2026. The proclamation does not adjust generic pharmaceuticals, their ingredients or biosimilars at this time, and directs Commerce to advise the President within one year on whether generics should be brought in. CBP issued entry guidance in CSMS #69395344.
Impact
For a branded drug that is not made in the United States and comes from outside the five treaty economies, the duty goes from the ordinary rate to 100 percent of customs value on September 29. Distributors, contract packagers and hospital purchasing groups that were not on the July 31 list have had eight weeks of ordinary duty and lose it on that date. Landed cost on an unlisted product can double overnight.
What to watch
The company lists sit in Annexes II and III, which are not reproduced here, so whether a supplier already pays the duty or starts on September 29 has to be checked against the annex or with the supplier. The rate for a product turns on the company that makes it and on its country of origin, not on the importer. Generics and biosimilars are excluded for now, but the proclamation orders a one-year review of that exclusion.
How to prepare
- 1Find your suppliers in the annexes
Check whether each manufacturer is in Annex II (company agreement, zero rate), Annex III (paying since July 31) or neither (starts September 29).
- 2Confirm patent status per product
Only articles under a valid, unexpired U.S. patent are covered. Generics and biosimilars stay at the ordinary rate.
- 3Land September stock before the 29th
The duty applies to goods entered for consumption on or after 12:01 a.m. on September 29, 2026, so entry date, not ship date, decides.
- 4Re-price at origin
The same molecule from an EU, Japanese, Korean or Swiss plant pays 15 percent; from the UK, zero. Origin planning now changes the number more than any negotiation on price.
- 5Ask your broker for the CSMS guidance
CBP's CSMS #69395344 sets the chapter 99 reporting for these duties; get the headings onto every entry from day one.
Sources
- Adjusting Imports of Pharmaceuticals and Pharmaceutical Ingredients Into the United States (Proclamation 11020) · Federal Register · April 9, 2026
- Adjusting Imports of Pharmaceuticals and Pharmaceutical Ingredients into the United States · The White House · April 2, 2026
- CSMS #69395344: Section 232 Duties on Imports of Patented Pharmaceutical Articles and Ingredients · U.S. Customs and Border Protection · July 30, 2026
- Trump Administration Imposes Section 232 Tariffs on Patented Pharmaceutical Imports; Tiered Rate Structure Takes Effect Beginning July 31, 2026 · Crowell & Moring · April 6, 2026
We summarize published reporting and official notices. Always confirm rates and dates against the Federal Register or your customs broker before acting on them.