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US Imposes Maximum 12.5% Tariff on Russian Imports Over Forced Labor
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The United States imposed an additional 12.5% tariff on imports from Russia on July 24, placing the country among the economies assigned the maximum rate over failures to restrict trade in goods produced with forced labor, according to The Moscow Times.
The outlet reported the measure on July 24, citing a statement from the Office of the US Trade Representative.
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“President Trump is tackling modern-day slavery at its source by requiring our trading partners to enact and enforce import bans to ensure products made by workers under such horrifying conditions are no longer traded in global commerce,” the Office of the US Trade Representative said in the statement cited by The Moscow Times.
Russia was included among 60 economies that Washington said had failed to enact or effectively enforce bans on imports produced with forced labor, the outlet added.
More than two dozen of those economies were assigned the maximum additional tariff rate of 12.5%, according to the report. Other US trading partners received rates or tariff arrangements ranging from 10% to 12.5%.
The new tariffs took effect at 00:01 Eastern Daylight Time on July 24, immediately after the expiration of US President Donald Trump’s temporary 10% global import surcharge, which had remained in force for 150 days, the outlet reported.
Goods already in transit were exempted until 00:01 Eastern Daylight Time on July 28, according to the US trade office.
A senior administration official told reporters that the forced-labor tariffs were a separate measure rather than a replacement for the expired global surcharge, The Moscow Times reported.
The official argued that the United States maintains and enforces stricter restrictions on forced-labor goods than many of its trading partners, putting American companies at a competitive disadvantage.
Trade between the United States and Russia has fallen sharply since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, totaling $4.4 billion in 2025, according to figures cited by The Moscow Times.
The outlet identified fertilizers, nuclear materials, and precious metals as major US imports from Russia. US exports to Russia consisted largely of vaccines and other medical products.
The tariff regime includes exemptions for essential raw materials, products not available in sufficient quantities in the United States, and goods whose inclusion could cause broader economic disruption, according to the Office of the US Trade Representative.
The excluded categories include oil and gas, fertilizers, certain food products, aircraft and aircraft components, and critical minerals, The Moscow Times reported.
Automobiles, steel, aluminum, and copper, already covered by separate US national security tariffs, were also excluded from the new measure.
The forced-labor tariffs are separate from a bipartisan sanctions package introduced by US senators on July 15, according to The Moscow Times.
That bill targets Russian political and military officials, state-owned enterprises, oligarchs, and financial institutions.
It would also authorize tariffs of up to 100% on imports from major purchasers of Russian oil and gas, including China and India.
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