US sets Section 232 tariffs on trucks and buses  

Provisions for trucks and buses 

The latest proclamation from President Trump includes MHDVs in Classes 3 through 8. These classes include pick-up trucks, moving trucks, tractors, and eighteen-wheelers.  

Additionally, tariffs will only be applied to the value of non-US content in a vehicle if the truck is currently privileged under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). All other MHDVs without USMCA preferred status will be tariffed at the rate of the vehicle’s full value.  

Currently, the US doesn’t have a system for establishing the application of tariffs to non-US contents and parts. In his proclamation, Trump calls for the Secretary of Commerce and US Customs and Border Patrol to establish this new process. Key parts include auto engines, transmissions, tires, and chassis. 

School buses, transit buses, and motor coaches will recieve a 10% tariff per the latest proclamation.  

Offset programs 

Domestic manufacturers assembling trucks or engines can earn a credit equal to 3.75% of the value of the trucks and engines they assemble domestically to offset tariffs on imported auto parts. This offset initiative rewards domestic MHDV manufacturers and runs from Nov. 1, 2025, through Oct. 31, 2030.  

As for domestic automakers, a matching 3.75% offset, this one based on the manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP), runs April 2025 through April 2030.  

However, knock down kits, or parts’ compilations, are always tariff-liable and never eligible for USMCA exemptions or offset credits. Only final-assembled US vehicles qualify for the automaker’s offset scheme.  

Moreover, the White House fact sheet states that President Trump’s proclamation authorizes conditional reductions in Section 232 steel and aluminum duties for USMCA-origin metals tied to new capacity supporting US auto and MHDV production. 

Autoworkers union lauds latest S232 proclamation 

The United Autoworkers (UAW) labor union celebrated the president’s proclamation.  

“For decades, heavy truck makers have rushed to kill good blue-collar jobs from Allentown, Pa., to Gastonia, N.C., in order to pay poverty wages abroad while Wall Street makes a killing. That ends Nov. 1,” said union President Shawn Fain.  

He added, “Our members lobbied and mobilized to save these communities, and made their voices heard in Washington, D.C. We have pushed for action like this for decades, and we congratulate President Trump for delivering for heavy truck workers everywhere. Let’s keep going and rewrite our broken trade rules.”