The Office of the US Trade Representative has proposed additional tariffs of up to 12.5% on imports from 60 economies over forced labour trade practices.
The action targets economies that have failed to ban goods made with forced labour, affecting major trading partners including China, the European Union and Japan.
The determination was made under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which authorises the president to impose levies countering unfair foreign trade practices that harm US commerce.
Authorities found that all 60 countries have failed to impose or effectively enforce a prohibition on forced labour-related imports, creating what officials described as an “unlevel playing field” for American workers.
Under the proposal, economies that have adopted a full or partial prohibition on forced labour trade would face a 10% duty rate, while all other economies would face 12.5%.
The USTR also proposed a separate textile mechanism allowing certain volumes of apparel and textile imports from some economies to enter the US at reduced rates.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said: “The failure of our most important trading partners to address the importation of goods made with forced labor is unacceptable.”
Greer continued: “This creates a dynamic where American workers are forced to compete globally on an unlevel playing field.”
He added: “We will no longer tolerate this disparity. Some trading partners have taken initial steps to prevent the importation of forced labor goods, including through USMCA and commitments in Agreements on Reciprocal Trade.”
Greer said each trading partner must do more to ensure “that trade does not perversely encourage and entrench forced labor globally.”
The proposal follows the US Supreme Court striking down most of President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs earlier this year, leaving a 10% global baseline in place.
Written comments on the proposal are due by 6 July, with public hearings scheduled for 7 July, according to the official notice.
Separately, the US government began seeking public comments on the scope of a new US-China Board of Trade, agreed during a bilateral summit held last month between the two sides.
The board could lead to reduced tariff rates on each other’s goods, with public opinion also being sought on non-sensitive sectors that could benefit from tariff modifications on both sides.