Which tariff rate applies: the rate on the entry date or today’s rate?

What the law says

For most entries, the duty rate is the one in effect when the entry documents and any estimated duties then required have been deposited with Customs. That is what 19 U.S.C. 1315(a) says. If a rate changes after that point, the entry is not re-priced.

This is why a rate you looked up today can be the wrong rate for an entry you made in the spring.

Why it matters

Tariff rules change during the year. A Section 232 action can start, a Section 301 exclusion can expire, and a program can be struck down or replaced. Each change has its own start and end date.

Applying today’s rate to a past entry can be wrong in either direction. It can overstate what was owed, which matters for a refund claim. It can also understate it, which matters for the importer’s exposure on underpaid duty.

Common mistakes

• Using today’s tariff rate to check a past entry.
• Using the purchase order date.
• Using the shipment date.
• The correct date to use is the entry date.

The exceptions

19 U.S.C. 1315(a) names three cases where a different date controls.

• Informal mail entries: the rate in effect when the preparation of the entry is completed.
• Entries for immediate transportation, in the stated circumstances: the rate in effect when the transportation entry was accepted at the port of original importation.
• Articles whose duties may be paid later under 19 U.S.C. 1505: the rate in effect at the time of entry.

How the tools handle it

The Tariff Calculator asks for the entry date. We hold dated policy data from February 1, 2025 onward. For an entry before that, the tool refuses to answer rather than show a rate it cannot support.

For later entries, the result says which layers were worked out from the law as it stood on your entry date and which are shown at current law. It also flags any Chapter 99 filing heading it could not confirm for that date, so you know what to check in the tariff schedule revision in force on the day.

Legal authority

19 U.S.C. 1315(a), Effective date of rates of duty, with its three stated exceptions.

Related questions

• Does USMCA qualification remove Section 232 duties?
• What is AD/CVD, and how do I know if it applies to my import?

Related terms

• Entry Date Rule — Duty is set by the law in force on the date goods entered, not the date of the shipment, order, or lookup.
• Section 301 — US Trade Act authority for additional duties in response to unfair foreign trade practices.
• Section 232 — National-security authority behind steel, aluminum, and copper tariffs and their derivative-article coverage.
• AD/CVD (Antidumping and Countervailing Duty) — Producer-specific duties offsetting unfair pricing or a foreign government subsidy, set case by case.
• USMCA Regional Value Content (RVC) — The originating-content threshold a good must meet to qualify for USMCA duty-free treatment.