Tariff monitor · Plastics & Polymers
Plastic semi-finished products: statutory & effective tariff rates
Statutory HTS duty rates for 65 plastic semi-finished products tariff lines (MFN Free–6.5%), from USITC. Effective rate May 2026: 9.46%; monthly history since 2014.
Statutory rates from the schedule
- Plastic profiles, tubes, plate, sheet, and film — machining and thermoforming stock. This family covers HTS headings 3916, 3917, 3920, 3921: 65 eight-digit rate lines with MFN (column 1, general) rates of Free–6.5% in the 2026 schedule.
- Chapter 99 flags on individual lines mark Section 301/232 overlay provisions (e.g. 9903.88.02) that apply on top of the MFN column.
What importers actually paid
- Latest month on record (2026-05): 9.46% effective on $1.2B of imports, versus 11.31% in the same month a year earlier. The monthly archive holds 149 observations from 2014-01 through 2026-05.
- In 2025, U.S. imports for consumption in this family totaled $13.2B in customs value and paid $1.3B in calculated duties: an effective tariff rate of 9.84%. The effective rate captures Section 301/232 overlays, exclusions, and special-program use that the statutory column cannot.
- A year earlier the effective rate was 4.12%, so the duty burden rose 5.7 points.
- Top source countries in 2025: Canada ($3.0B at 0.33%), Mexico ($1.7B at 1.01%), China ($983.5M at 47.42%), Germany ($927.7M at 11.45%), South Korea ($850.5M at 8.5%).
Representative rate lines
- 3916.10.00.00: Of polymers of ethylene — MFN 5.8%
- 3916.20.00: Of polymers of vinyl chloride — MFN 5.8%
- 3916.90.10.00: Of acrylic polymers — MFN 6.5%
- 3916.90.20.00: Racket strings — MFN 3.1%
- 3916.90.30.00: Monofilament — MFN 6.5%
- 3916.90.50.00: Other — MFN 5.8%
- 3917.10.10.00: Of cellulosic plastics materials — MFN 6.5%
- 3917.10.60.00: Of collagen — MFN Free
About this data
- Reference statistics derived from USITC published data. Not a customs ruling; verify rates with a licensed customs broker before relying on them.
Last reviewed 2026-05-12.