Surviving The 2025 Tariff Wave: A Strategic Guide For U.S. Importers

The first quarter of 2025 has reshaped the U.S. trade landscape with a flurry of executive actions by the Trump administration, introducing a new wave of tariffs on imports from almost all U.S. trading partners. The Trump Administration has also levied broad duties on imports from Canada, Mexico, and China, on the basis of emergency powers of the Executive Branch, citing national security, border control, and illicit drug interdiction.

These moves, often issued with little notice and implemented rapidly, have thrust U.S. importers into uncharted territory. The legal mechanisms used—including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, and Section 301 Trade Act of 1974 — have broad implications for compliance, contract performance, profit margins, and supply chain stability.

This article provides an outline of different approaches to mitigating the impact of higher tariff costs under the new regime. It would behoove one to contact trade professionals who can equip importers with actionable tools for compliance and navigating the current tariff environment.

Tariff Classification

1. Confirm the tariff classification of your products. If questions arise, E-rulings by US Customs and Border Protection are typically processed within 30 days of submission and serve as legal authority for classification.
2. Audit HTS codes and update sourcing origins. Verify the sourcing of all inputs, parts, etc. for your imports in order to qualify under specific FTA or other agreements. While not yet carved out except for Mexico and Canada, the administration may well expand the reach of tariff exclusions to include originating goods under all U.S. FTAs.
3. Rules of Origin. Audit the regional value calculation for products qualifying for duty-free treatment under the USMCA, or potentially other FTAs, in advance of movement by the Administration on originating goods under the FTAs.
4. Tariff Engineering. Review sourcing for your goods to ensure that all opportunities for changing the origin of goods to U.S. made. reduce declared value is another potential avenue to pursue, according to Lowe, which may involve shifting or sharing the tariff burden to both upstream and downstream partners via contractual provisions or using incoterms to shift customs and duties burdens."
5. Use of Chapter 98 and 99 Entry Provisions. Qualifying goods for any of the temporary entry provisions may result in tariff mitigation.

Lobbying, Advocacy, and Litigation

1. Lobby USTR and the White House for an Exclusions Process. During the first Trump Administration, USTR led a robust process to review exclusions under a clear set of rules. Many were granted and an exclusion process for goods not made in nor reasonably available in the U.S. would help mitigate some of the tariff costs for goods that must be imported to be available at all in the U.S. market.
2. Lobby Congress to Take Action. Article I of the Constitution places the responsibility for setting tariffs squarely on Congress, not the Executive Branch. As stock prices fall, consumers are squeezed by higher costs, and small and medium-sized companies confront bankruptcies, the only tool available to help them will be their congressional representatives. The surest way to get relief from the tariff barrage is for Congress to do its job and exercise its tariff authority sensibly on behalf of the people and not just political expediency.
3. Use Trade Associations. Collect Information to lobby both Congress and the Executive Branch on behalf of your industry, sector or interest group through established voices. Join industry groups pursuing litigation or negotiated relief
4. Engage in comment periods and legal challenges.
   1. As agencies take actions to implement the tariff actions, take advantage of comment periods to provide input for the decision-making process.
   2. Appeal all decisions that can be appealed and challenge agency actions as unconstitutional under the Major Questions doctrine.
   3. Challenge the legality of de facto abrogation of U.S. Free Trade Agreements without following the appropriate legal and agreement processes.
   4. Calculate your monetary damages under the new tariff regime and use that for standing to raise the issues in U.S. district courts.
   5. Seek injunctions on the basis of irreparable harm for compliance with agency actions beyond the scope of legal authority.

Customs Strategies

1. Implement a First Sale for Export program. This will assist in determining the values upon which duties are levied.
2. Switch to Periodic Monthly Statement. This will shift all tariff payment responsibility for all duties from the date of entry and seriatim payments to one monthly statement of all imports for the month, gaining more time to pay.
3. Prepare for CBP audits and enforcement actions. This will ensure you are prepared to provide the information necessary to properly calculate duties on your imports.
4. For USMCA and other FTAs. Explore using "deductive value," regional value, rules of origin and certification of origin, and getting on Customs reconciliation programs.
5. Utilize Foreign-Trade Zones (FTZs) to defer duties. Imports into a U.S. FTZ are not dutiable until the goods actually enter commerce in the U.S. If you use substantial U.S. inputs, consider establishing a factory in an FTZ to import parts and assemblies for substantial transformation in the FTZ to U.S. origin goods. This will certainly assist in mitigating the worst effects of the current high tariffs.
6. Consider bonded warehouses for duty-free storage. If you have substantial discretion for the timing of importation, then a bonded warehouse permits the goods to be stored but not entered into commerce, so duties are deferred until actual entry of the goods.
7. Track exclusions and waiver notices. Assuming some sort of exclusions and waiver process is implemented in response to the higher U.S. costs for goods, implement a tracking program in-house or with appropriate trade specialists.
8. Importers disputing duties can:
   1. Respond to CBP's CF-28 and CF-29 notices
   2. File CF-19 protests on liquidations
   3. Litigate at the S. Court of International Trade (CIT) if necessary
9. In contracts,
   1. add tariff clauses to shift tariff costs and review Incoterms to move to DDP type
   2. Include force majeure and tariff clauses in contracts
   3. Hedge against currency and freight volatility
   4. Model different tariff scenarios for budgeting

Compliance for Operations and Logistics

1. Shorten lead times and automate workflows
2. Route shipments through optimized ports
3. Prioritize compliance and documentation

Need help navigating the 2025 tariffs? Consult with experienced trade lawyers, customs brokers, and global logistics advisors at the Braumiller Legal and Consulting Groups to tailor solutions to your unique import profile.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.