The United States imposed a 12.5% tariff on most Thai rice imports starting July 24, 2026. The move is part of a broader Section 301 action against 60 trading partners over what Washington calls inadequate forced-labor enforcement.
Key Facts
- Thailand supplied 59% of all US rice imports in 2025.
- Up from a temporary 10% global levy, the new Thai duty is set at 12.5%.
- USA Rice lobbied USTR to set tariffs above the 12.5% rate ultimately imposed on Thailand.
The tariff replaced a temporary 10% global levy that had applied since earlier this year under a separate legal authority.
The Supreme Court limited that authority after ruling the president had exceeded it with an earlier round of tariffs. Thailand was one of 38 economies assigned the higher 12.5% rate, according to USTR.
Seventeen other countries, including India, Cambodia, and Indonesia, received a lower 10% duty after committing to ban forced-labor imports.
Thailand's 12.5% rate matches China and Vietnam, the two other major rice suppliers placed in the higher tariff tier. India, Cambodia, and Indonesia landed 2.5 percentage points lower after committing to forced-labor import bans. All six rates took effect the same day, July 24, 2026.
How the 12.5% tariff applies to Thai rice imports
Thailand's Commerce Ministry identified roughly 2,120 export lines as exempt from the new duty, according to Nation Thailand. That list covers more than half the country's US-bound export value.
The ministry's list of examples included
- Integrated circuits
- Natural rubber
- Tapioca starch
- Pineapple
- Coconut products
- Cane sugar
Rice wasn't on that list.
Thai rice shipments therefore face the full 12.5% rate, like most of the country's other exports to the US market.
Goods already in transit stay exempt until 12:01 a.m. Eastern time on July 28, a four-day window for importers to clear shipments loaded before the rule took effect. The new rate replaced the expiring 10% global levy rather than adding to it. Thai rice importers are absorbing a 2.5 percentage point increase over what they paid the day before.
Forced labor in rice production could be the reason for higher tariff
USTR's investigation wasn't about rice specifically. It found that Thailand and 59 other economies failed to adopt or enforce a ban on forced-labor imports.
The finding triggered the 12.5% tariff across nearly all Thai exports, not rice specifically. "We will no longer tolerate this disparity," Ambassador Jamieson Greer said in USTR's June announcement of the proposed rates.
USTR's supporting report did examine rice as a case study, but the example centered on Myanmar, not Thailand. It illustrated how forced-labor loopholes in one country's rice trade can undercut US competitiveness, according to USA Rice. Whether Thailand's rice sector specifically factored into USTR's finding against the country is unconfirmed. The investigation covers Thailand's import policy broadly rather than any single commodity.
US growers call the 12.5% rate not enough
USA Rice President and CEO Peter Bachmann made the case for a steeper tariff back in June, when USTR first proposed the rate range. "USA Rice would like to see a higher than 12.5 percent tariff" imposed on major rice exporters, he said. Bachmann named Thailand, India, Vietnam, and Pakistan as trading partners the group considers "bad actors" on forced labor. He added that the group still backs the administration's use of tariffs to press Thailand and other exporters in trade talks.
Thailand sees it differently. Thai Chamber of Commerce chairman Poj Aramwattananont noted that most competing rice-exporting countries received the same or similar tariff rate. This leaves Thailand's competitive position in the US market largely unchanged, Nation Thailand reported.
Thailand's Commerce Ministry is preparing low-interest loans, tax support, and reduced logistics costs for affected exporters while it works toward a broader trade agreement with Washington.
