Published on: 03 February 2021
There has been a significant amount of uncertainty as to whether the rebalancing measures imposed by the EU on a list of products, including yachts originating in the US, would be retained by the UK after the Brexit transition period ended.
After discussions with the Department for International Trade (DIT) and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), British Marine has received confirmation that these rebalancing measures will, for the time being, continue and therefore the 25% tariff on US yacht imports will still apply.
Following a Section 232 investigation in 2018 by the US Department of Commerce, the US implemented additional tariffs on certain steel and aluminium imports from multiple countries including the EU. In response, the EU introduced rebalancing measures (also known as countermeasures) on a list of products originating in the US.
The UK Government has stated that their top priority is to defend British interests across all sectors of the economy and that these rebalancing measures are critical to protect such interests, including in the steel and aluminium sector.
DIT has confirmed that they will continue to press the US for an urgent resolution to these tariffs as part of ongoing trade discussions. The UK Government hopes that the US will remove its current tariffs on steel and aluminium products, in which case there will no longer be a need to apply any rebalancing measures.
The UK Government has confirmed that they will open a public consultation on the rebalancing measures being applied and reserves the right to amend them in future. British Marine continues to press the UK Government for timescales of this consultation and will provide more information to our members as soon as it becomes available.