Importing tires into the United States: DOT rules, AD/CVD and 2026 tariffs

QUICK ANSWER You can import tires into the US if every tire carries the DOT symbol and a full tire identification number from a factory that holds an NHTSA plant code. Tires without them are refused entry, apart from a few narrow exceptions covered below. In 2026 a new passenger tire pays 4% MFN (normal) duty plus a 25% Section 232 tariff. That comes to 29% from Thailand, Vietnam, India or Indonesia. From China it is 54%, because the old 25% Section 301 duty is added. Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and the EU pay 15% in total, and tires that qualify under USMCA pay nothing from Mexico or Canada for now. Passenger and light truck tires from China, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam also pay anti-dumping or countervailing duty. That rate is set for each producer and runs from 0% for some to more than 125% for others.

Importing tires is easier with a forwarder specialized in imports into the US. Platton ships your tires on reliable sailings from Asia and Europe at competitive rates, and our AI-driven platform shows every tire container in real time. You can request a quote for your next container online.

Which tires may enter the US: FMVSS standards and the DOT symbol

Federal law bars the import of any tire made after a safety standard took effect unless the tire complies with that standard and is certified (49 U.S.C. 30112). For tires, that certification is the DOT symbol. The original manufacturer molds it into the sidewall, and under 49 CFR 574.5 the symbol itself certifies that the tire meets the applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS).

NHTSA does not approve tires before sale. Manufacturers certify their own tires, and NHTSA states that non-compliant equipment may not be imported, whether it is new or used.

Which standard applies depends on the tire:

Which safety standard applies to which tire

Besides the DOT symbol, an FMVSS 139 tire carries the manufacturer's name or brand name, the tire size, the load rating, the maximum inflation pressure and the tire identification number explained below. The rule works in reverse too. A tire that no FMVSS covers must not carry the DOT symbol.

Tires are only one of the vehicle parts that federal safety standards regulate. If you import brake, lighting or glazing parts alongside them, our automotive parts imports page shows how we ship those parts.

Reading the 13-symbol TIN on the sidewall

Every new tire carries a tire identification number (TIN) of 13 symbols, molded into the sidewall in three groups (49 CFR 574.5):

The parts of a tire identification number

Check three things on your samples. On a tire made after April 13, 2025, the plant code must have three symbols, because the old two-symbol codes were allowed only until that date. The letters G, I, O, Q, S and Z never appear in a TIN. And a passenger or light truck tire under FMVSS 139 carries the full TIN on the intended outboard sidewall, while the other sidewall carries either the full TIN or a partial one that leaves out the date code.

What changes when you import tires for resale

Under 49 U.S.C. 30102, federal safety law treats anyone who imports motor vehicle equipment for resale as a manufacturer. Put your brand on tires that someone else makes, and you are deemed the manufacturer of those tires as well. The factory still certifies each tire with the DOT symbol. What follows the tire into the market falls to the importer and the brand name owner: registration, grading, recalls, reporting and penalties.

The factory's plant code and US agent

NHTSA issues the plant code at the start of the TIN to the tire manufacturer, through its online manufacturer portal (49 CFR 574.6). According to NHTSA's interpretation letters, the code goes only to the company that actually molds the tire, because only the factory can put the mark on the sidewall. An importer cannot get one for the factory. Your supplier has to hold its own.

A foreign factory must also name an agent in the United States for service of process before it offers tires for import, and until it does, it may not import (49 CFR 551.46). The agent must be a person or company with permanent residence in the US.

TAKEAWAY Before you order from a new factory, ask for two things: its NHTSA plant code, and confirmation that its Part 551 agent designation is on file.

Tire registration forms for dealers and buyers

Registration exists so owners can be reached in a recall. Each new tire manufacturer and each brand name owner must give registration forms to every distributor and dealer that sells its tires, and keep the registration records for at least five years (49 CFR 574.7).

If you sell tires under your own brand, you run this system yourself or through a designee.

UTQG grades on passenger tires

New passenger car tires sold in the US must carry Uniform Tire Quality Grading (UTQG), which has three grades:

• Treadwear: a number in steps of 20
• Traction: AA, A, B or C
• Temperature: A, B or C

The tire manufacturer provides the grades, or the brand name owner does for branded tires. They are molded into the sidewall, and every tire not sold as original equipment also carries them on a label attached to the tread (49 CFR 575.104). NHTSA must receive the grading information at least 30 days before the tires are offered for sale.

Deep-tread winter tires, temporary spares, tires for rims of 12 inches or less and limited production lines (among other conditions, no more than 15,000 tires of the same design and size imported per year) are exempt. Outside these exemptions, NHTSA cannot waive the rule.

Recalls, early warning reports and the per-tire penalty

A manufacturer that decides a tire has a safety defect or fails a standard has five working days to report to NHTSA. It must also notify owners, purchasers and dealers (49 CFR Part 573). For imported tires, a report by either the foreign factory or the importer counts for both. Tire brand name owners carry the same reporting duties as manufacturers.

Tire importers and brand name owners also file Early Warning Reports with NHTSA every quarter, due 60 days after the quarter ends (49 CFR 579.26). Groups below 15,000 passenger, light truck or motorcycle tires report only death and injury incidents. A filing by the factory, the importer or the brand name owner counts for all three, so agree in writing on who files. A safety recall of the same tire in another country must also be reported to NHTSA within five working days.

Penalties are counted per tire. Under 49 CFR 578.6, each violation can cost up to $27,874, and each tire is a separate violation, with a cap of $139,356,994 for a related series of violations. On a container of non-compliant tires, the penalty can be far larger than the value of the cargo.

At the port: the HS-7 declaration for tire shipments

A tire is denied entry unless the importer declares the legal basis for bringing it in (19 CFR 12.80 and 49 CFR 591.5). That declaration is the HS-7. It is mandatory, and every tire shipment needs one filed with the entry. It can be filed electronically through the Automated Broker Interface of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Our guide to the customs clearance process shows where this filing sits among the other entry steps.

The declaration is signed under penalty. A knowingly false HS-7 can bring a fine of up to $10,000, up to five years in prison, or both.

Box 2A and the Tire Manufacturer Code

For a compliant tire, the declaration is Box 2A: the tire conforms to all applicable FMVSS and carries the manufacturer's certification label. NHTSA's filing guide gives sample wording for tires.

The electronic filing for tires must also include the Tire Manufacturer Code, the factory's NHTSA-assigned code. This field is mandatory. It is where a missing plant code stops a shipment, because without the code the HS-7 data cannot be completed.

Other boxes cover narrower cases:

• Box 1: tires made before any applicable standard took effect
• Box 4: tires imported solely for export
• Box 8: tires that are not motor vehicle equipment at all, such as an earthmover tire built and used only off-road. This box is filed with the importer's substantiating statement.

What CBP does with a tire that fails

If tires arrive without a valid basis for entry, the port director refuses to release them and sends the importer a notice of refusal (19 CFR 12.80). The importer then has 90 days from the date of that notice to export the tires under CBP supervision. Tires still in the US after that are disposed of under customs law. All the while, the container sits in a customs hold and storage charges keep growing.

Used tires, retreads and casings

Used tires follow the same rule as new ones. A used tire needs the DOT symbol on the sidewall, or proof that it was made before its standard took effect. That date is January 1, 1968 for passenger car tires and March 1, 1975 for other tires.

NHTSA's interpretation letters allow one exception: used truck casings with less than 2/32 inch of tread, imported solely to be retreaded before road use. NHTSA treats these as material for further manufacturing, so they may enter without the DOT symbol or TIN. Beyond this exception, the agency has no authority to waive the rule.

Retreads depend on the vehicle they are for:

• Retreaded passenger car tires fall under FMVSS 117 and must carry the retreader's DOT symbol. Without it, they cannot be imported.
• Retreads for other vehicles are not covered by any FMVSS, so they may be imported without certification. They still need a TIN (seven symbols plus "R") to be sold in the US.

Federal law treats the retreader as the tire's manufacturer. A tire retreaded abroad and imported also counts for the federal excise tax when the importer sells or uses it; the rate is in the FAQ below.

On duties, used and retreaded tires fall under HTS heading 4012:

• Retreaded car, bus and truck radials pay 4% MFN, and most other retreads pay 3.4%.
• Used pneumatic tires (4012.20) enter free of MFN duty.
• Three of these lines are on the Section 232 auto parts list (see below).
• Chinese retreads under 4012.19.80 pay 7.5% Section 301 rather than 25%.

None of the AD/CVD orders on passenger, light truck, or truck and bus tires covers tires that are not new, such as retreaded and recycled tires.

Anti-dumping and countervailing duty orders on tires by country

Anti-dumping (AD) duties offset prices that the Department of Commerce finds unfairly low. Countervailing duties (CVD) offset foreign subsidies. Both come on top of every other duty in this guide. The tables show the orders in force on October 7, 2026, with the latest published cash deposit rates.

Passenger vehicle and light truck tires

There is no anti-dumping order on Vietnamese passenger tires, because in 2021 the US International Trade Commission (ITC) found those imports negligible.

Truck and bus tires and off-the-road tires

The off-the-road tire orders on China were revoked in 2019, and the off-the-road CVD order on Sri Lanka in 2018.

AD/CVD rates depend on your supplier

Commerce sets each AD/CVD rate for a producer and exporter. Companies it has reviewed pay their own rate. A company that has never been reviewed pays the all-others rate.

In China, any exporter without a separate rate pays the China-wide rate, including an exporter that fails to file its separate-rate certification.

Two rules close the obvious workarounds:

• When the exporter has no rate of its own but the producer does, the producer's rate applies.
• Under the China passenger tire order, an exporter outside China without its own rate pays the rate of the Chinese exporter that supplied it. Reselling Chinese tires through a third country does not reset the rate.

When production crosses borders, the country of origin rules decide which country a tire comes from.

Coverage follows the written scope of each order. The HTS numbers listed in an order are there for convenience, and the written description of the product decides what is covered (CBP AD/CVD FAQ). A passenger tire imported on a wheel is still covered, and the duty applies to the tire only.

Before you order, get the exact legal names of the producer and the exporter from your supplier. Then look up the rate for that pair in CBP's AD/CVD search. Commerce's instructions to CBP are the binding source.

Tires the orders leave out

The passenger and light truck orders exclude tires that are not new, non-pneumatic tires, racing tires that carry no DOT symbol, temporary-use spares for passenger vehicles, and special trailer (ST) tires that meet every condition in the order. Off-road tires are out only with an off-road size, a "Not for Highway Service" warning, a speed rating of 55 mph or less and an off-road tread. The truck and bus orders exclude non-pneumatic tires and certain mobile home tires. Exclusions are narrow, and they can change: after a 2026 court ruling, Cheng Shin's T-type temporary spares now fall under the Taiwan order.

Cash deposit at entry, final duty years later

The AD/CVD you pay at entry is a cash deposit, and a deposit is only an estimate. The final duty is set later, when Commerce completes an administrative review of that period. CBP then bills any increase or refunds any overpayment, with interest either way. CBP puts the process at about three years on average.

Preliminary review results do not change the deposit. Only final results do.

Three consequences follow:

• Reimbursement certificate. Before liquidation, the importer must file a certificate stating whether it has been reimbursed for anti-dumping duties. Without it, CBP presumes reimbursement and doubles the duty.
• No drawback. AD/CVD cannot be recovered through duty drawback when the tires are later exported.
• No shelter in a zone. A foreign-trade zone does not shelter tires from AD/CVD. Tires under an order pay AD/CVD when they leave the zone for the US market.

What one tire pays in 2026: MFN, Section 232, Section 301 and AD/CVD

Tire import duty in 2026 is built in layers. The base is the MFN rate for its HTS classification:

• 4% for new radial car and truck tires (4011.10.10, 4011.20.10)
• 3.4% for non-radial car and truck tires
• free for motorcycle, bicycle and agricultural tires

On top of that come Section 232, the old Section 301 duty on Chinese tires, the 2026 Section 301 forced-labor duty on tires outside Section 232, and any AD/CVD.

Two earlier layers are gone: IEEPA tariffs stopped on February 24, 2026, and the 10% Section 122 surcharge that followed ran until July 23, 2026.

Duty before AD/CVD, by origin (MFN + Section 301 + Section 232)

Notes on the table:

• Non-radial passenger tires (4011.10.50) carry 3.4% MFN instead of 4%.
• Mexican and Canadian tires that do not qualify under USMCA pay MFN plus 25% on the Section 232 lines and MFN plus 10% on all other tires.
• Every entry also pays the merchandise processing fee: 0.3464% of value, with a minimum of $34.58 and a maximum of $670.86 from October 1, 2026 (CBP user fee notice).
• Ocean cargo also pays the harbor maintenance fee of 0.125%.

Why Section 232 is the tariff most tires pay

Tires are on the Section 232 auto parts list. Proclamation 10908 put a 25% tariff on the parts in US note 33(g) from May 3, 2025. That list includes:

• passenger and light truck tire lines 4011.10.10, 4011.10.50 and 4011.20.10
• retread and used tire lines 4012.19.40, 4012.19.80 and 4012.20.60
• inner tubes under 4013.10

Heavy truck and bus radials followed on November 1, 2025, under the 25% tariff on medium- and heavy-duty vehicle parts in Proclamation 10984. Proclamation 10908 does not treat original-equipment tires differently from replacement tires.

The Section 301 forced-labor duty started on July 24, 2026, at 12.5% for China, Thailand and Vietnam and 10% for India, Indonesia and Mexico, among others. It exempts goods entered under a Section 232 heading.

So a passenger tire from Thailand pays 29%, not the 16.5% some online duty tools show; that figure misses Section 232 and applies a tariff the tire does not pay.

Importing tires from China adds one more layer. Tires are on Section 301 List 3 at 25%. The tire-specific exclusions have expired, and USTR continued these actions on October 7, 2026. This duty stacks with Section 232. That is how a Chinese passenger tire reaches 54% before AD/CVD. Our Section 301 tariffs guide covers the lists in full.

Worked example: duty on one container of passenger tires

Take one container of new passenger radials (HTS 4011.10.10) with an entered value of $40,000, shipped by ocean. The fees are $138.56 for MPF and $50 for HMF, $188.56 in total for each scenario. Here is what the same cargo pays from five suppliers in four countries, at the rates in the tables above, with no free trade agreement claimed.

Duty on a $40,000 container of passenger radials

TAKEAWAY The AD/CVD rate follows the producer: two Thai suppliers can differ by $5,664 in duty on the same container.

A Korean supplier with its own reviewed rate can land cheaper than a Thai supplier at the all-others rate. From the Chinese supplier, the duty is more than twice the value of the tires.

Freight, insurance and inland delivery come on top of these figures. To turn them into a full cost per container, use the landed cost guide; the import duty calculator works out the duty for your own HTS line and origin.

Federal excise tax is not in the table. It applies only to tires rated to carry more than 3,500 lb (see the FAQ).

Shipping tires to the US with Platton

Platton ships tire orders of any size, from a first trial container to a steady program. We collect the supplier's documents before each booking, so every container sails with a complete file.

Ocean freight from Asian and European tire plants

We ship tires on weekly sailings from Asia and Europe with Maersk, MSC, CMA CGM, Evergreen and Hapag-Lloyd, at competitive rates negotiated with the carriers. We load from:

• China: Qingdao, Shanghai, Ningbo, Shenzhen and Xiamen
• Vietnam: Ho Chi Minh City and Haiphong
• India: Nhava Sheva, Mundra and Chennai
• Europe: Rotterdam, Antwerp, Hamburg, Felixstowe and Le Havre

Cargo arrives at Los Angeles and Long Beach, Seattle and Tacoma, Oakland, New York and New Jersey, Savannah, Charleston, Norfolk or Houston. Space on the sailing you pick is confirmed at booking, and that holds in peak season too.

See our ocean freight service and our lanes from China, Vietnam, Thailand, India and Europe.

Full containers or consolidated loads for tire orders

A full order from one factory moves best as FCL shipping, with one container for your cargo only. If you buy from several suppliers, buyers consolidation combines their cargo into one container at origin, so you pay for one container instead of several part loads.

Tires often fill a container by volume before they reach its weight limit, so plan the order by count and size. Our container capacity calculator shows how many will fit. For what drives the price of the container itself, read our guide to ocean freight rates.

Supplier documents and container tracking on one platform

Before you book, our supplier document validation team collects the commercial invoice, the packing list and the rest of your supplier's paperwork, and checks that the file is complete. For tires, ask your supplier for the exact names of the producer and the exporter, because the AD/CVD rate depends on both, and for the factory's NHTSA plant code, which the HS-7 filing needs.

Once the tires sail, you can follow every container with real-time tracking on our AI-driven platform. Your quotes, bookings and automated documentation sit in the same place.

From the terminal to your warehouse: drayage and storage

Once the tires are released, our drayage team takes the container from the terminal to your door. We cover 42 US ports and rail ramps. We run 93% same-day port pickup, 36 hours on average from gate-out to delivery, and 97.4% on-time delivery.

If the tires need to wait for buyers or move on in smaller loads, our warehouse services offer bonded and non-bonded storage and transloading.

Planning a tire order from Asia or Europe? Request a quote and lock in space on a weekly sailing for your next container.

Common Questions About Importing Tires

Can tires without a DOT marking be imported into the US?

No, apart from a few narrow exceptions. A road tire made after its safety standard took effect must carry the manufacturer's DOT symbol, whether it is new or used, or it is refused entry. The exceptions are:

• tires shown to have been made before their standard applied (1968 for passenger car tires, 1975 for others)
• used truck casings with less than 2/32 inch of tread, imported only for retreading
• tires that are not motor vehicle equipment, such as earthmover tires used only off-road, declared under HS-7 Box 8
• tires imported solely for export

What is the current import tariff on tires in the US?

A new passenger or light truck radial pays 4% MFN plus 25% Section 232. That is 29% from most origins, 54% from China, and 15% in total from Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and the EU. Tires that qualify under USMCA pay 0% from Mexico and Canada.

Tires outside Section 232 pay the 2026 Section 301 forced-labor duty instead, at the rates in the duty-by-origin table above. AD/CVD comes on top for covered tires from China, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

What is the tariff on tires from China, including anti-dumping duty?

A Chinese passenger radial pays 54% before trade remedies: 4% MFN, 25% Section 301 and 25% Section 232. The anti-dumping deposit is 59.15% to 78.33% for the three exporters in the latest final review, and 76.46% for any exporter without a separate rate. Countervailing duty comes on top, at 125.50% for Jiangsu General and Winrun. Chinese truck and bus tires have their own AD and CVD orders, listed in the truck and bus table above. Sourcing and shipping on the rest of that lane are covered in how to import from China.

What is the US tariff on tires from Thailand?

Thai passenger and light truck radials pay 29% (4% MFN plus 25% Section 232) plus anti-dumping duty. The AD rate is 0.00% for Sumitomo Rubber (Thailand), 2.90% for Sentury Tire and the companies covered by the July 2026 review, and 17.06% for all others.

Thai truck and bus radials also pay 29%, under the heavy-duty Section 232 tariff, and they have their own AD order on top: 48.39% for Bridgestone and 12.33% for Prinx Chengshan and all others. Thai tires outside Section 232 pay MFN plus 12.5% Section 301.

Are tires subject to Section 232 tariffs?

Yes. Since May 3, 2025, the auto parts tariff of 25% has applied to the passenger and light truck tire lines, several retread and used tire lines, and inner tubes. Since November 1, 2025, heavy truck and bus radials have paid 25% under the medium- and heavy-duty parts tariff. Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and the EU pay 15% in total on the passenger and light truck lines, and USMCA-qualifying tires pay no Section 232 for now.

Do Mexican and Canadian tires qualify for USMCA duty-free entry?

Yes, if they meet the USMCA origin rules. A qualifying tire enters free of MFN duty, pays no Section 232 for now and is exempt from the 2026 Section 301 forced-labor duty. A Mexican or Canadian tire that does not qualify pays MFN plus 25% if it is on a Section 232 line, or MFN plus 10% if it is not. See our guide to country of origin rules for how origin is proven.

Can I get a refund on tire tariffs paid in 2025?

Only on the IEEPA portion, so check which of your 2025 entries actually carried an IEEPA duty line; tires on the Section 232 list were exempt from the IEEPA reciprocal duties. On February 20, 2026, the Supreme Court held that IEEPA does not authorize tariffs. CBP is refunding IEEPA duties collected between February 3, 2025 and February 24, 2026 through its CAPE process.

Section 232, Section 301 and AD/CVD paid on tires are not refunded this way. Our tariff refunds guide explains who files and when.

What HTS code covers passenger car and truck tires?

New car tires fall under 4011.10: 4011.10.10 for radials at 4% MFN and 4011.10.50 for other tires at 3.4%. New bus and truck tires fall under 4011.20: 4011.20.10 for radials at 4% and 4011.20.50 for other tires at 3.4%. Retreaded and used tires go under 4012. Inner tubes go under 4013, with car, bus and truck tubes (4013.10) at 3.7%. The last digits for radial car tires are split by rim size. Our HTS classification guide explains how a full code is built.

What is the federal excise tax on imported tires?

The manufacturer, producer or importer pays 9.45 cents for every 10 pounds of a tire's maximum rated load capacity above 3,500 pounds. The rate is 4.725 cents for bias ply tires and for super single tires not designed for steering. The tax is reported quarterly on IRS Form 720. A tire rated at 3,500 pounds or less owes nothing, and a tire rated at 6,000 pounds owes about $23.63. Under current law the tax ends on October 1, 2028.

Where does the US import tires from?

Major sources include, in Asia, Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia and China. Mexico and Canada supply tires from North America, and Germany from Europe. The origin changes the bill sharply, as the duty-by-origin table above shows, and five of these countries also have AD or CVD orders on passenger tires.

What does it take to become a tire wholesaler that imports directly?

Importing tires for resale makes you a manufacturer under federal vehicle safety law. In practice, that means:

• buying only from factories that have an NHTSA plant code and a US agent
• filing an HS-7 with every entry
• running tire registration and providing UTQG grades if the tires carry your brand
• handling recalls and Early Warning Reports
• paying federal excise tax on tires rated over 3,500 pounds

Check the AD/CVD rate for each supplier before you sign. Our first-time importer guide covers the general setup for a first shipment.

Related Guides

• Automotive parts imports: how Platton ships auto parts, with tires often in the same order.
• Country of origin rules: how origin is decided, and why it matters for USMCA and AD/CVD.
• Section 301 tariffs: the China lists and the 2026 forced-labor action in full.
• Landed cost: how to turn the duty stack into a full cost per tire.
• Importing auto parts: Section 232, NHTSA and EPA rules for the rest of an auto parts order.