With the new regulations, the EU is fulfilling the agreements from the customs deal concluded with US President Donald Trump last year.Image: keystone
Jul 1, 2026, 01:51Jul 1, 2026, 01:51
From today on, industrial goods and lobsters from the USA can be imported into the EU duty-free. Reduced tariffs or tariff quota rules also apply to certain agricultural and marine products to improve market access.
With the new regulations, the EU is fulfilling the agreements from the customs deal concluded with US President Donald Trump last year. According to the EU Commission, European consumers will benefit from better access to imports from the USA and will also have price advantages.
With the customs deal, the EU managed to avert an impending trade war with the USA. At the same time, however, the international community had to accept US tariffs of up to 15 percent on most goods exported to the United States and make further concessions such as the abolition of EU tariffs on US industrial goods.
Safety net should persuade USA to comply with deal
In the event that the USA does not fully implement its commitments, the rules for trade facilitation for the USA have been linked to a safety net. It stipulates that EU tariff concessions can be suspended again if the USA violates agreements.
In addition, December 31, 2029 is set as a fixed expiry date. The EU Commission must comprehensively assess the consequences of the changes by June 30, 2029. It can then also propose extending the tariff concessions.
Trump’s deadline would have been July 4th
Trump recently named the US national holiday on July 4th as the deadline for implementing the trade agreement. If the EU does not fulfill its part of the agreement by then, the tariffs would “unfortunately immediately rise to a much higher level,” he threatened.
The EU had previously explained delays in the implementation of EU commitments as disputes and conflicts provoked by Trump. Work in Brussels was temporarily on hold for weeks because Trump had announced new tariffs against EU states in the Greenland conflict. (sda/dpa)