US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation imposing additional tariffs ranging from 10% to 100% on imported drones and their parts, citing national security and supply chain concerns.
US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation imposing additional tariffs ranging from 10% to 100% on imported drones and their parts, citing national security and supply chain concerns.
US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation introducing new tariff restrictions on imported drones. According to a statement from the White House, the decision was made citing national security and supply chain concerns; drones with a maximum takeoff weight exceeding 25 kilograms or possessing special capabilities such as thermal imaging, along with their ground stations and some critical parts, will be subject to a 100% tariff. Smaller drones and other parts that do not pose a national security risk and lack certain features will be subject to a 25% tariff.
While a 15% tariff will be applied to drones and parts imported from the European Union (EU), Japan, Liechtenstein, South Korea, Switzerland, and Taiwan; imports from the UK will be subject to a 10% tariff, provided that nearly all of the hardware, software, and technology originate from these countries or the US. Thus, additional tariffs ranging from 10% to 100% have been imposed on imported drones and parts.
The majority of the tariffs will take effect 21 days after the proclamation is signed, while tariffs on non-sensitive parts will come into effect 180 days later. For products granted exemption approval by the Department of Defense (Pentagon), the tariff application will begin 180 days later.
Meanwhile, with the decree, US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick has been authorized to establish a localization program aimed at attracting production to the country for companies making new investments in drone and part manufacturing. The White House stated that these steps aim to increase domestic drone production and reduce dependency on foreign critical parts.
