EDITOR’S NOTE: The following is a News & Insights report by the RV Industry Association (RVIA).
Late on Friday, August 15th, the Department of Commerce announced a significant expansion of Section 232 tariffs, adding over 400 Harmonized TariffSchedule (HTS) codes to the existing list of steel and aluminum derivative products. U.S. Customs and Border Protection has since issued guidance, and the tariffs officially took effect at 12:01 AM today, August 18.
What to know:
- The new tariffs apply immediately. There is no exception for goods already in transit.
- An ad valorem tariff of 50% will apply to the metal content of affected products. Non-metal content remains subject to IEEPA reciprocal tariffs.
Products impacted include:
- HTS 8716.10.00 – Trailers & semi-trailers for camping
- HTS 8708.99.81 – Brake hoses of plastics with fittings, slide-in campers, cable traction devices, truck bed camper shells, and more
- HTS 8708.92.60 – Mufflers and exhaust pipes for motor homes.
- HTS 8708.93.30 – Clutches for other motor vehicles.
- HTS 8708.99.23 – Parts of steering systems (other than steering wheels, columns, boxes, parts thereof).
- HTS 8708.10.30 – bumper stampings of steel, the foregoing comprising parts and accessories of motor homes.
NOTE: This list is not exhaustive and members should refer to the full list in Annex I.
Notably excluded:
- HTS 8708.99.68: Power train parts, drive shafts, universal joints for vehicles, including motorhomes
- HTS 8708.50.51: Drive axles for motorhomes
The notice also states that 60 codes were not included because they are subject to ongoing investigations pursuant to Section 232 or other trade statutes, meaning these products remain at risk. The full list of included HTS codes is available in Annex I of the Federal Register notice. The Department is expected to open another inclusion process in September.
