The EU has decided once again to suspend the application of high additional import duties (25–30%) on products originating in the United States, including soya beans and soya-based products. This suspension will now remain in place until 7 August 2026. These ‘rebalancing tariffs’ were introduced last year as the European response to the high customs duties imposed by the Trump administration on EU exports.

Following the compromise agreement reached by the EU and the US in July 2025 — the so-called ‘Turnberry deal’ — aimed at de-escalating their increasingly strained trade relations, the EU had initially suspended its previously announced rebalancing tariffs until 7 February 2026.

Exemption for industrial products

Under the ‘Agreement on Reciprocal, Fair and Balanced Trade’ concluded between the EU and the US in August 2025, the EU committed to exempting a large number of US-origin products — primarily industrial goods — from import duties. However, recent remarks by President Trump regarding Greenland have led to some delay in the European Parliament’s consideration of the proposal for tariff exemption.

Duty-free imports

To prevent the rebalancing tariffs from entering into force on 7 February, the EU has now suspended them for a further six months. Provided that the European Parliament and the Council process the Commission’s proposal according to schedule, products such as fatty acids, lecithin and certain vegetable oils — including an annual tariff quota of 400,000 tonnes for crude soya oil — may be imported into the EU free of duty from April onwards.