Since 24 July, the United States has been applying new additional import duties, based on Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, to goods originating in 60 countries , which the US administration accuses of failing to ban imports of products made using forced labour or, in some cases, of failing to effectively enforce such a ban, even though it exists. For products originating in the European Union, the additional duty is calibrated to bring the cumulative rate of the most-favoured-nation duty and the new Section 301 duty to 10 per cent. The measure effectively replaces the temporary duties under Section 122 of the same Act, which were also set at 10 per cent and were due to expire on the same day.

In the context of the ongoing reform of the customs union and increase in the number of free trade agreements between the EU and its main partners, the European Commission is significantly strengthening the conditions for the implementation of preferential origin in two directions: facilitation and control.

The digitalisation of cross-border waste shipments has entered a new phase with the mandatory application of DIWASS. At the crossroads of environmental compliance, flow traceability and customs controls, operators must now integrate this platform into the securing of their import, export and transit operations.

Entered into force on 1 May 2026, the new French Customs Code substantially modernises the presentation of French customs law. Although the reform was carried out without altering the substance of the law, it has immediate practical consequences for operators, who must now become familiar with a new structure and a new numbering system for the applicable provisions.

The US tariffs have once again been challenged in a ruling issued by the Court of International Trade on 7 May. This Ruling is a significant decision in principle, although it is more limited in its immediate effect and has immediately been appealed by the Trump administration implying a suspensive effect of the decision. This new element adds a further degree of uncertainty to the EU-US trade relations.

Amid renewed trade tensions between the European Union and the United States, the US tariff landscape is evolving rapidly and remains challenging for businesses to navigate. As the US administration increasingly relies on multiple legal instruments, while the European Union develops its own response, exporters are operating within a framework that is both more uncertain and more structured. A clear understanding of these dynamics is essential to secure trade flows and anticipate risks.

In the Keladis cases, the CJEU strictly circumscribes the use of “acceptable minimum prices” derived from European statistical databases, notably those disseminated by the European Anti-Fraud Office. It recalls that such data can never, on their own, displace the transaction value and may be relied upon only as a measure of last resort, in compliance with the hierarchy of valuation methods and subject to strict safeguards.

The Supreme Court’s decision of 20 February 2026 reshapes the US tariff framework by striking down duties imposed under the IEEPA. To maintain commercial pressure, the Trump administration immediately activates Section 122 and introduces a universal 10% import surcharge.

The successive crises that international trade has faced in recent years have reshaped supply chains. Once a secondary concern for businesses after the rise of liberal globalisation driven by the 1994 Marrakech Agreements, the management of customs risks has now become a differentiating factor and a driver of competitiveness. On top of this come the risks inherent to regulatory enforcement.

As from 1 January 2026, the PEM framework will no longer operate as a coherent whole. Instead, it will be structured around two distinct regimes: (i) partners applying the revised PEM rules; and (ii) partners remaining subject to the 2012 rules or former bilateral protocols. For companies, this evolution leads to a significant increase in complexity.