The Ministry of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs has pushed back against media reports suggesting the United States imposed a new tariff on Trinidad and Tobago, stating categorically that no new tariffs have been applied to the country’s exports and that the applicable rate has in fact been reduced.
In a press release issued Saturday, July 25, the Ministry took issue with a Guardian newspaper front-page headline reading “US Slaps T&T with 10% Tariff,” describing the report as misleading and inaccurate, and one that could mislead the business community and other commentators.
“The Ministry of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs wishes to categorically state that the United States of America has not applied any new tariffs on exports from Trinidad and Tobago,” the release stated.
According to the Ministry, the current 10 percent rate traces back to Executive Order 14326, issued by US President Donald Trump on July 31, 2025, which introduced reciprocal tariffs on more than 70 countries globally, including Trinidad and Tobago. That order followed an earlier one dated April 2, 2025, aimed at addressing US trade deficits. The new tariffs took effect on August 7, 2025, applying a 15 percent reciprocal rate to Trinidad and Tobago’s exports to the US, a rate the Ministry says was inherited by the current administration.
The Ministry noted that in February 2026, the US Supreme Court reversed the previous administration’s reciprocal tariffs, which had been imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Immediately following that ruling, the US President invoked Section 122 of the US Trade Act to impose a temporary 10 percent tariff on all countries globally, a global measure that expired at midnight on July 24, 2026.
Separately, on March 12, 2026, the US initiated a Section 301 investigation into 60 of its largest trading partners over their enforcement of bans on goods produced through forced labour. Though not specifically targeted at Trinidad and Tobago, the country was required to participate as one of the US’s top 60 trading partners.
On June 2, 2026, the USTR proposed a 12.5 percent tariff on Trinidad and Tobago’s exports, along with 59 other economies under investigation. Public hearings on the proposal were held from July 7 to 9, 2026.
The Ministry said that under the direction of Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, the Government took immediate steps to ensure the proposed 12.5 percent tariff was not applied to the country’s exports. Among the measures taken, the Prime Minister instructed that legislation be brought before Parliament to prohibit the importation of goods produced from forced labour into Trinidad and Tobago. This was codified through Act No. 16 of 2026, assented to on June 25, 2026, amending Section 45 of the Customs Act legislation piloted by Minister of Finance the Honourable Davendranath Tancoo.
The Honourable Sean Sobers and a team from the Ministry of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs also held technical discussions with the USTR between May and July 2026, including in-person visits to the USTR’s office in Washington, DC on May 14 and July 16.
On July 23, 2026, the US President announced final tariff determinations for the investigated economies. Trinidad and Tobago was placed among the countries facing the lowest rate of 10 percent, alongside Argentina, Canada, India, Mexico, the United Kingdom and others. Other economies, including Australia, Brazil, China and the European Union, face a 12.5 percent rate.
The Ministry pointed to paragraph nine of the US President’s announcement, which stated that following consultation and the publication of the Notice of Determinations, additional economies, including Cambodia, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Sri Lanka and Trinidad and Tobago had imposed forced labour import prohibitions, and that their goods should accordingly be tariffed at the 10 percent rate to encourage continued enforcement.
The Ministry also reiterated that the USTR has agreed to maintain exemptions on several key Trinidad and Tobago exports, including crude petroleum, anhydrous ammonia, urea and ammonium mixtures in solution, liquified natural gas, urea, and ferrous products from iron ore reduction (iron pellets). These products collectively account for over 85 percent of the country’s exports to the US and will attract a duty rate of 0 percent.
“In light of the above, the Government of Trinidad and Tobago wishes to clarify that Trinidad and Tobago has not been subjected to a 12.5 percent tariff by the United States,” the release stated. “On the contrary, following sustained engagement and proactive measures by the Government, Trinidad and Tobago has successfully secured a reduction in the tariff rate applicable to its exports to the United States, from 15 percent in August 2025 to the lowest applicable rate of 10 percent.”