Section XV Tariff Guide: Steel, Aluminum & Base Metals — 2026 HTS Import Duties, Section 232 & Anti-Dumping

HTS Section XV — Base Metals and Articles of Base Metal (Chapters 72-83) — is the highest-stakes section for many US importers. With 550 six-digit subheadings, it covers steel (Ch. 72-73), copper (74), nickel (75), aluminum (76), and other industrial metals. This section is layered with overlapping trade remedies — Section 232 national security tariffs, anti-dumping duties (ADD), and countervailing duties (CVD) — creating a compliance environment where misclassification can trigger six-figure penalties.

Chapter 72: Iron and Steel — The 232 Battleground

Chapter 72 covers raw steel products. The classification key is product form:

• 7201-7206: Primary forms (pig iron, ferroalloys, ingots)
• 7207-7212: Semi-finished products (slabs, billets, flat-rolled)
• 7213-7229: Finished long products (bars, rods, wire, angles, shapes, sections)

Section 232 Steel Tariffs (25%): In effect since 2018, the 25% Section 232 tariff on steel applies to most Chapter 72 and 73 products. Key exemptions:

• Country exemptions: Australia, Argentina, Brazil, South Korea (quota-limited), Canada, Mexico (USMCA)
• Product exclusions: CBP maintains a list of specific HTS subheadings excluded from 232. These exclusions are company-specific in some cases, product-wide in others
• Derivative products: In 2024, Section 232 was expanded to cover certain steel derivatives — downstream products made from steel (nails, staples, fasteners under Chapter 7317-7318)

Chapter 76: Aluminum — The 232 + ADD Double Hit

Aluminum products face both Section 232 (10%) and, for Chinese-origin products, ADD/CVD duties:

• 7601: Unwrought aluminum — 10% Section 232 (country exemptions apply)
• 7604-7606: Bars, rods, profiles, wire, plates, sheets, strip — Section 232 applies
• 7607-7616: Foil, tubes, fittings, castings, other articles — some derivatives now caught by expanded Section 232

ADD on Chinese Aluminum: Chinese aluminum extrusions (7604.21-7604.29) face ADD rates of 33.28% (China-wide rate) + Section 232 (10%) = 43.28% effective duty. Importers have attempted transshipment through Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand — CBP's Enforce and Protect Act (EAPA) investigations have targeted these evasion schemes.

USMCA Melt-and-Pour Rule for Metals

Under USMCA, steel and aluminum must meet the melt-and-pour rule to qualify for preferential duty rates: the metal must be "melted and poured" (initially produced) in a USMCA country. Simply rolling, cutting, or shaping imported steel in Mexico does NOT confer USMCA origin. CBP has denied USMCA claims on steel products where the slab was imported from Brazil and only hot-rolled in Mexico.

Anti-Dumping / Countervailing Duty Matrix

Pro Tip: ADD/CVD rates are company-specific. The rates above are country-wide rates applied to uncooperative respondents. Cooperating exporters receive lower, company-specific rates. Always check the Commerce Department's final determination for your specific supplier.