Overview
The European Union is pressing the United States to adhere to the trade terms agreed at Turnberry after a U.S. Supreme Court decision invalidated President Donald Trump’s authority to impose the previous global tariff on EU goods. In response, the U.S. rolled out a new "import surcharge" which began being collected at a 10% rate on Tuesday and which the administration is seeking to increase to 15% - the approximate level that most EU exports had faced under the Turnberry understanding.
What the Turnberry deal set out
Leaders at Turnberry last July established a framework in which most EU exports to the United States would be subject to a broad 15% U.S. tariff, with a very narrow set of products retaining the pre-existing most-favoured nation (MFN) duty if that rate was higher than 15%. Steel and aluminium tariffs were left unchanged at 50%. A small number of EU goods attracted no additional tariffs under that arrangement, including items specified as unavailable natural resources such as cork, aircraft and aircraft parts, and generic pharmaceuticals and their ingredients. Washington also agreed to reduce the tariff on EU car imports to 15% from a previous 25%.
In exchange, the European Union committed to eliminate its import duties on all U.S. industrial goods, to grant preferential market access to a broad set of U.S. seafood and agricultural products, and to keep zero tariffs on U.S. lobsters, a measure that traces back to a separate agreement reached in 2020.
How the new U.S. "import surcharge" changes the picture
The U.S. Supreme Court determined that the President had overstepped his authority under the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act, the statute that had been used to justify the broad 15% tariff on EU shipments. As a result, those tariffs were replaced by the newly instituted "import surcharge." Unlike the Turnberry tariff schedule, the surcharge is levied in addition to the prevailing MFN duty rate.
The surcharge does not alter the tariffs already in place for cars, nor does it change the 50% levies on steel and aluminium. The surcharge is also designed with a number of exemptions: it does not apply to critical minerals, pharmaceuticals, certain electronic goods, beef, tomatoes and oranges, or to any products already subject to 'Section 232' national security tariffs.
The U.S. began collecting the surcharge at 10% and is working to raise it to 15%. The European Commission has acknowledged a transition period lasting a few months during which U.S. tariffs will be higher for some EU exports.
Which EU products may now face higher duties
Because the average U.S. MFN duty sits at 3.4%, adding the 10% surcharge will lower the combined MFN-plus-surcharge level relative to the Turnberry 15% rate for many industrial items. That relationship will change, however, if the surcharge is increased to 15% - in that scenario, combined duties could match or exceed the Turnberry tariff level for many products.
The European Commission notes that 7% of EU exports to the United States are normally subject to MFN duties above 5%. EU goods exports to the U.S. totalled 536 billion euros in 2024.
Some categories and individual products already face MFN rates that produce higher charges under the new system. Textiles, clothing and footwear are affected - footwear tariffs can reach up to 48% - as are a range of consumer items including suitcases and handbags, glassware, pillows and cushions and certain light fittings.
Agricultural and food exports are also exposed: many dairy products face MFN rates above 5%. Examples include Edam and Parmesan cheeses at 10% and Roquefort at 8%. Certain fruit and vegetables - melons, strawberries, Brussels sprouts and carrots among them - are also subject to MFN duties at levels above 5%.
Implications and immediate outlook
The immediate effect is a period during which some EU exporters will confront higher U.S. charges than under the Turnberry framework, while others may pay less depending on their product-specific MFN rates. The U.S. exemptions for categories such as critical minerals and certain pharmaceuticals, and the continuing 50% duties on steel and aluminium, mean the surcharge reshapes but does not wholly replace the previous tariff architecture established between the two sides.
Brussels has formally called on Washington to honour the previously negotiated terms, even as both sides navigate the legal and practical fallout of the Supreme Court ruling and the replacement surcharge mechanism. The EU has signalled that this transition could last several months while adjustments are made.