Yes, there is an import tax from Japan to the USA, and for most goods it now starts at 15 percent. Under the U.S.-Japan trade agreement implemented in September 2025, nearly every product entering the United States from Japan carries a baseline tariff of 15 percent, plus federal processing fees and, for ocean shipments, a harbor fee. What you actually owe depends on what the item is, what it’s worth, and how it arrives.
The 15 Percent Baseline and How It Works
The framework agreement between the United States and Japan was announced in July 2025 and took effect in September 2025.1The White House. Implementing The United States-Japan Agreement It doesn’t replace the existing tariff schedule so much as set a floor underneath it.
Every product has a “Column 1” duty rate in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, which is the standard rate the U.S. charges most trading partners. If a Japanese product’s Column 1 rate is below 15 percent, enough additional duty is added to reach 15 percent. If the Column 1 rate is already at or above 15 percent, nothing extra is added and the product pays its existing rate.1The White House. Implementing The United States-Japan Agreement So 15 percent is a minimum, not a maximum. Products that already carried higher tariffs still do.
A few categories sit outside the standard treatment, including automobiles and auto parts, aerospace products, generic pharmaceuticals, and certain natural resources not available domestically. Civil aircraft and their parts are exempt from the additional duties and pay only their Column 1 rate.2Federal Register. Implementing Certain Tariff-Related Elements of the United States-Japan Agreement
Fees You’ll Pay on Top of the Tariff
The tariff isn’t the whole bill. Two federal fees apply to most commercial imports.
The Merchandise Processing Fee (MPF) is 0.3464 percent of the declared value on formal entries. For fiscal year 2026, the minimum MPF is $33.58 and the maximum is $651.50, and both figures adjust annually for inflation.3Federal Register. Customs User Fees To Be Adjusted for Inflation in Fiscal Year 2026
The Harbor Maintenance Fee (HMF) is a separate 0.125 percent charge on the value of cargo arriving by ocean vessel. Air shipments don’t owe it.4eCFR. 19 CFR 24.24 – Harbor Maintenance Fee
The $800 Duty-Free Exemption for Shipments Is Gone
Until August 2025, shipments valued at $800 or less could enter duty-free under the de minimis rule in Section 321 of the Tariff Act.5U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Section 321 Programs That exemption is suspended. Executive Order 14324, effective August 29, 2025, ended duty-free treatment for low-value shipments from all countries, and a February 2026 executive order kept the suspension in place.6The White House. Continuing the Suspension of Duty-Free De Minimis Treatment for All Countries
Practically, this means a $30 item from a Japanese online seller is now subject to duty, taxes, and fees. Postal shipments follow a process where the carrier or another qualified party remits duties to CBP monthly; non-postal shipments require an appropriate entry filed in the Automated Commercial Environment.7U.S. Customs and Border Protection. E-Commerce Frequently Asked Questions Expect duty and processing charges to appear at checkout or on delivery that weren’t there before mid-2025.
If You’re Bringing Goods Back as a Traveler
The de minimis suspension applies to shipped goods. Traveler exemptions are separate and still in effect.
Returning U.S. residents can bring up to $800 worth of goods duty-free if the items are for personal or household use, accompany the traveler, and the trip lasted at least 48 hours. Travelers returning from U.S. insular possessions like the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, or Guam get a $1,600 threshold, though no more than $800 of that can come from goods acquired elsewhere.8eCFR. 19 CFR Part 148 – Personal Declarations and Exemptions
Alcohol and tobacco have their own caps inside the personal exemption. Returning residents can include up to 1 liter of alcoholic beverages duty-free (you must be 21 or older), up to 200 cigarettes, and up to 100 cigars. Nonresidents visiting the United States get 1 liter of alcohol and either 50 cigars, 200 cigarettes, or 2 kilograms of smoking tobacco.8eCFR. 19 CFR Part 148 – Personal Declarations and Exemptions Anything past the caps is dutiable, and alcohol duty is calculated on content per liter rather than per bottle.
Cars and Auto Parts From Japan
Vehicles are one of the most commonly asked-about Japanese imports, and the numbers work out differently for different vehicle types.
Passenger cars carry a 2.5 percent Column 1 rate, so the agreement pushes the total to 15 percent. Light trucks already carry a 25 percent Column 1 rate, which exceeds the 15 percent floor, so no additional duty is added and they continue to pay 25 percent.2Federal Register. Implementing Certain Tariff-Related Elements of the United States-Japan Agreement
Duty is only part of importing a vehicle. Any car brought into the United States has to meet federal motor vehicle safety standards enforced by NHTSA, or be brought into compliance by a registered importer. The main exception is the 25-year rule: a vehicle at least 25 years old can be imported without meeting current safety standards.9NHTSA. Importation and Certification FAQs EPA emissions rules have their own separate exemption for vehicles over 21 years old. This is why older Japanese domestic market cars are a common import while newer JDM vehicles usually aren’t.
How CBP Figures Out What You Owe
Two things drive the duty amount: what the product is, and what it’s worth.
Classification comes from the Harmonized Tariff Schedule. The first six digits of an HTS code are international; the United States adds four more for a ten-digit code. Duty rates are set at the eight-digit level, and CBP makes the final call on which code applies.10United States International Trade Commission. Frequently Asked Questions about Tariff Classification, the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, Importing, and Exporting Getting classification wrong is a common source of underpaid duty and later penalties.11U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Determining Duty Rates
Valuation is usually simpler: the primary method is “transaction value,” the price actually paid for the goods when purchased for export to the United States. That figure includes the merchandise itself, packing costs, selling commissions, and any royalties or licensing fees tied to the sale.12U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Customs Duty Information When there’s no transaction price, such as a gift, CBP uses alternative methods like comparison to recently imported identical or similar merchandise, or a calculation working backward from the U.S. resale price, using only information available in the United States.13eCFR. Valuation of Merchandise
Paying the Bill
For most personal shipments, the shipping carrier handles the collection. FedEx, UPS, and the postal service typically pay duties and fees to CBP and then bill you before releasing the package. If you’re ordering from a Japanese retailer, this is what you’ll see.
Commercial importers pay through the Automated Commercial Environment, CBP’s electronic portal. Payment options include ACH transfers, and credit or charge cards are accepted at designated CBP-serviced locations. In-person payment by check at a port of entry is also allowed, with a $30 fee if a check bounces.14eCFR. 19 CFR 24.1 – Collection of Customs Duties, Taxes, Fees, Interest, and Other Charges
Shipments valued at $2,500 or less generally qualify for informal entry with less paperwork. Above that, formal entry applies, along with a customs bond and, in most cases, a licensed customs broker.15U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Filing a Formal Entry Goods regulated by another federal agency, such as food or radio-frequency electronics, require formal entry regardless of value.16U.S. Customs and Border Protection. When Is a Customs Bond Required
If CBP Gets It Wrong, or You Do
If you think CBP classified or valued your goods incorrectly, you can file a protest using CBP Form 19 within 180 days of the decision you’re contesting. Protests can be filed on paper (in quadruplicate) at the port of entry or electronically.17eCFR. 19 CFR 174.12 – Filing of Protests Records make or break a protest. Without documentation of what you paid, what shipped, and what code should apply, it’s unlikely to succeed.
Errors in declarations, whether in description, classification, value, or country of origin, are penalized on a three-tier scale under 19 U.S.C. ยง 1592:18Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1592 – Penalties for Fraud, Gross Negligence, and Negligence
- Negligence carries a penalty up to the lesser of the domestic value or two times the duties lost. If the error didn’t affect duty owed, up to 20 percent of the dutiable value.
- Gross negligence carries a penalty up to the lesser of the domestic value or four times the lost duties, or up to 40 percent of the dutiable value where no duty loss occurred.
- Fraud can be penalized at the full domestic value of the merchandise, with no reduced alternative.
These are civil penalties, not criminal charges, but the dollar amounts can be large. Undervaluing a $50,000 shipment and drawing a gross-negligence finding could trigger a penalty of up to $200,000 on top of the unpaid duty. Keeping accurate records and getting the classification right the first time is the least expensive way to avoid that outcome.