US Tariff of 15% on Japan Auto Exports Kicks In Today
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The U.S. will begin formally implementing a lower 15% tariff rate on imports of automobiles and auto parts from Japan as of Sept. 16, according to the Trump administration, in line with a trade deal between the two economies.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection guidance on implementing the deal said the lower rate will take effect for “passenger vehicles and light trucks (automobiles) and automobile parts that are products of Japan and entered for consumption or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption on or after 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on September 16, 2025.”
President Donald Trump signed an executive order to implement the deal earlier this month, setting a maximum 15% tariff on most of Japan’s products, including automobiles.
Tokyo had pushed the administration to follow through on an agreement to reduce auto levies from 27.5%, a move seen as critical to a sector that is a major driver for the Japanese economy.
Japan's top trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa on Oct. 1 in Tokyo. (Hiro Komae/AP)
The auto sector accounts for the biggest component of Japan’s exports to the U.S. and serves as a pillar of employment and a trendsetter for wage growth.
Japan “welcomes the recent measures taken by the U.S. side as a steady implementation of the July 22 Japan-U.S. agreement,” Japan’s top trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa said Sept. 16 in Tokyo. “But even after this tariff cut is realized, tariffs will continue to apply.”
The overall trade deal also included a promise from Japan to create a $550 billion U.S. investment fund, a key concession that helped secure the lower rate. But the investment fund has been dogged by questions over its funding, with both nations describing the pledge in different terms. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has cautioned that Japan faces higher import taxes if it doesn’t fund Trump’s investment decisions.
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Along with the implementation of the lower car tariffs, the U.S. will end the stacking of previous tariffs on the fresh 15% universal tariffs, according to Akazawa. With no stacking, Japan will be subject to a 15% levy on goods that previously had tariffs that were lower than that level. But goods that have already faced higher tariffs will continue to face the same levies, meaning that steel and aluminum will continue to face a 50% levy.
Tokyo will also try to ensure that it won’t be treated worse than any other nation when it comes to future sectoral tariffs on semiconductors and pharmaceuticals as guaranteed by a safety clause in the July 22 trade deal, he said.
