Forced-labor Section 301 — Korea, Republic of — column 1 total brought to 12.5%

A Section 301 measure is a U.S. trade action under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. It may impose an additional duty or other requirement on covered merchandise associated with a specified country, product classification, or trade practice. “Column 1 total” generally refers to the combined duty treatment shown for a product in the U.S. Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTSUS), including the ordinary Column 1 rate and any applicable additional measure.

A measure described as Korea, Republic of, typically matters only when the merchandise meets the measure’s stated scope, including the applicable country-of-origin rules and HTSUS classification. The title alone does not decide coverage. Importers should verify the legal measure, product description, tariff provisions, effective information, and any rules about combining (“stacking”) duties. If forced-labor concerns are involved, also check whether separate detention, exclusion, seizure, or rebuttable-presumption rules may apply; these are distinct from a Section 301 duty.

What to check

• Confirm the product’s HTSUS classification using the complete tariff number and the measure’s product scope, not just a commercial description.
• Verify the country of origin under U.S. origin rules; the shipping country, seller’s location, and origin may be different.
• Read the official Section 301 notice, HTSUS notes, and current customs guidance for the applicable scope, exclusions, effective information, and entry requirements.
• Check whether the Section 301 duty is added to other ordinary, antidumping or countervailing, safeguard, or other applicable trade measures, and ask a customs broker when stacking is unclear.
• Keep invoices, bills of materials, manufacturing records, and supply-chain due-diligence records that support classification, origin, and any forced-labor compliance position.