The U.S.-Japan trade agreement was signed on October 7, 2019 by U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Japanese Ambassador to the United States Shinsuke Sugiyama. After ratification by the Japanese Parliament, the agreement entered into force on 1 January 2020. Once implemented, the agreement will restore the terms of beef and pork in the United States to Japan and reduce tariffs at the same rates as those currently paid by suppliers of the Global and Progressive Partnership (CPTPP) and the European Union under their respective agreements. Japan`s tariffs on cold cuts and frozen frozen meat will be reduced from 38.5% to 9% over 15 years. Tariffs on beef nuts will fall from 12.8% by 2028 to zero and other by-products by 2030. Tariffs on processed beef products will be raised to zero within five to fifteen years, depending on the product. Cooled and frozen beef cuts in the United States are subject to a U.S.-specific annual safeguard clause, which begins at 242,000 mt and is increased according to the schedule described in the USTR beef data sheet. A single safety consultation procedure for the agreement is also included in the beef fact sheet, the safeguard note and the following USMEF slides. Appendix II of the agreement sets out the rules of origin for determining whether a gutwartin is eligible for preferential or “agreement-derived” tariff treatment. The product-specific provisions (Annex II of the agreement) set out the degree of change in the tariff classification to which non-original materials must be subject. The general note 36 is added to the HTSUS and contains the requirements of the agreement.

Links to the text of the U.S.-Japan trade agreement and related documents are listed below. UsmEF slides with the most important details of the agreement are available online. For any questions, please contact Erin Borror. The USTR has also published the full text of the agreement online, as well as these incidental letters of interest: products made entirely or manufactured in the United States will generally be eligible for preferential tariff treatment under the USJTA. Products using materials from other countries may also be considered depending on the type of product and the classification of the customs code. For many of these products, the standard rule is a change in the tariff classification at the chapter or double-digit level (for example.B.