Section 301 Hearings Begin April 28: What Importers Must Know About the New Investigations

Section 301 Hearings Begin April 28: What Importers Must Know About the New Investigations

The U.S. trade policy landscape is about to shift again. On March 11 and March 12, 2026, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer announced the launch of 76 new Section 301 investigations targeting structural excess manufacturing capacity and failures to enforce forced labor bans across dozens of trading partners. Public hearings for both investigation tracks begin within weeks, and new tariffs could follow as early as late July 2026.

For importers still navigating the aftermath of the IEEPA ruling, the Section 122 universal tariff, and the April 2 Section 232 overhaul, these investigations represent the next wave of potential duty exposure. This article covers the key deadlines, what the investigations target, which countries and products are at risk, and what importers should do right now.

Two Parallel Investigation Tracks

USTR is running two distinct Section 301 investigation tracks simultaneously, each under a different subsection of the Trade Act of 1974.

Track 1: Structural Excess Capacity (Section 301(b)). This investigation examines whether 16 customs jurisdictions maintain policies that create structural excess manufacturing capacity — essentially, government subsidies, state-owned enterprise advantages, and industrial policies that flood global markets with below-cost goods. The 16 jurisdictions under investigation include China, the European Union, India, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, Brazil, Mexico, Turkey, Bangladesh, the Philippines, and Pakistan. The investigation focuses on sectors where overcapacity is most acute: steel, aluminum, solar panels, electric vehicles and batteries, semiconductors, shipbuilding, and certain chemical products.

Track 2: Forced Labor Enforcement (Section 301(b)). This parallel investigation examines whether 60 of the largest U.S. trading partners have adequate laws and enforcement mechanisms to prohibit imports of goods made with forced labor. The investigation assesses not just whether countries have forced labor laws on the books, but whether those laws are meaningfully enforced — particularly in sectors with documented forced labor risk such as agriculture, mining, garment manufacturing, and electronics assembly.

Key Deadlines for Importers

The hearing and comment schedule is compressed, and USTR has signaled that these investigations will proceed on an accelerated timeline rather than the standard 12-month window.

April 15, 2026: Deadline for written comments on both investigations and requests for public hearing appearances. If you import products from the targeted countries and sectors, submitting comments through the Federal Register docket is your primary mechanism for influencing the outcome.

April 28, 2026: Public hearings begin at the U.S. International Trade Commission building in Washington, D.C. for the forced labor enforcement investigation. These hearings are open to the public and will include testimony from industry groups, importers, foreign governments, and labor rights organizations.

May 5, 2026: Public hearing for the excess capacity investigation begins at the ITC building. This hearing is expected to draw significant participation from the steel, aluminum, solar, and EV industries.

Late July 2026 (estimated): USTR Greer has indicated that findings and potential tariff actions could come as early as late July, coinciding with the expiration of the Section 122 universal tariff on July 24. This timing is likely deliberate — new Section 301 tariffs could replace or supplement the Section 122 surcharge as it expires.

Which Products and Countries Face the Highest Risk?

Based on the investigation scope and historical Section 301 precedent, the highest-risk categories include steel and aluminum products from countries beyond China that are not already subject to Section 232 tariffs at the 50% tier, solar panels and photovoltaic cells from Southeast Asian manufacturing hubs (Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia), electric vehicle components and lithium-ion batteries from China and its regional supply chain, semiconductors and electronic components from countries with documented industrial subsidy programs, and textiles and garments from countries with weak forced labor enforcement.

For importers sourcing from Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia — countries that have absorbed significant manufacturing volume as companies shifted away from China — these investigations pose particular risk. A finding that these countries maintain unreasonable trade practices could result in new Section 301 tariffs layered on top of existing Section 122 and MFN duties.

How Section 301 Tariffs Stack With Other Duties

Section 301 tariffs stack additively with most other U.S. trade duties. Under the current tariff hierarchy established in 2025, Section 301 tariffs apply on top of base MFN duties and stack with both Section 232 tariffs and the Section 122 universal tariff. The only exception is that Section 232 and Section 122 are mutually exclusive — if Section 232 applies, the product is exempt from Section 122.

This means a product currently facing a 5% MFN duty plus a 10% Section 122 tariff could, if targeted by these new Section 301 investigations, see an additional 25% or more layered on. Use our Duty & Tariff Calculator to model your current landed costs and stress-test scenarios where Section 301 tariffs are added.

For a detailed explanation of how all current tariff layers interact, see our guide to Tariff Stacking in 2026.

What Importers Should Do Right Now

1. Audit your supply chain exposure. Map every product you import against the countries and sectors targeted by these investigations. Identify which SKUs are sourced from the 16 excess-capacity jurisdictions and the 60 forced-labor-enforcement jurisdictions. Quantify the dollar exposure if a 25% Section 301 tariff were imposed on each.

2. Submit public comments before April 15. If your industry or supply chain would be significantly affected, submit written comments through the Federal Register docket. Industry coalitions and trade associations often coordinate joint submissions, which carry more weight than individual filings.

3. Model tariff scenarios. Run landed-cost models under three scenarios: no new tariffs, moderate tariffs (10–15% on targeted products), and aggressive tariffs (25%+ mirroring existing China Section 301 rates). The Duty & Tariff Calculator can help with the base calculations.

4. Evaluate sourcing alternatives. If your primary sourcing country is under investigation, identify backup suppliers in countries with lower risk profiles. USMCA-qualifying production in Canada and Mexico remains exempt from the Section 122 tariff and would not be targeted by these investigations (though Mexico is one of the 16 excess-capacity targets, USMCA-qualifying goods have historically been treated separately). See our USMCA Duty-Free Benefits Guide for qualification requirements.

5. Monitor the July 24 deadline. The convergence of the Section 122 expiration and potential Section 301 findings in late July makes that date a critical planning milestone. Importers should prepare for the possibility that the 10% Section 122 tariff is replaced by targeted Section 301 tariffs that could be higher on specific product categories.

The Bigger Picture: A Permanent Tariff Shift

These Section 301 investigations represent a structural shift in U.S. trade enforcement. Unlike the IEEPA tariffs that were struck down by the Supreme Court, and unlike the temporary Section 122 surcharge that expires after 150 days, Section 301 tariffs have no built-in expiration date. Once imposed, they remain in effect until the President or USTR determines that the underlying trade practices have been resolved.

The existing Section 301 tariffs on China — originally imposed in 2018–2019 and maintained through multiple administrations — demonstrate this permanence. China's List 1 through List 4A tariffs have been in place for over seven years with no indication they will be removed. New Section 301 tariffs on additional countries could become similarly enduring fixtures of the U.S. tariff landscape.

For importers, this means the cost optimization strategies that worked in a lower-tariff environment may need fundamental revision. Companies that have not yet invested in tariff engineering, duty drawback programs, or foreign trade zone strategies should start now, before the next wave of tariffs takes effect.

For current tariff rate calculations across all active programs, use our Duty & Tariff Calculator. For background on the existing Section 301 tariff structure, see our explainer on Section 301 Tariffs Explained. And for the latest on the IEEPA refund process, read our Complete 2026 IEEPA Tariff Refund Guide.

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