Goods imported from Nicaragua into the United States carry an average effective tariff of 12.5% in 2026. This reflects the baseline Most-Favored-Nation duty together with any Section 232 duty on covered products and the forced-labor Section 301 duty where Nicaragua is on the covered list. Individual rates vary by product category, so use the full per-category breakdown below to find the rate for your specific goods.
Tariff Rates by Product Category
75 categories| Product Category | MFN Rate | S232 | S301 | S122 Carve-Out | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steel & Iron Products | 3.0% | — | View → | ||
| Aluminum Products | 4.0% | — | View → | ||
| Copper Products | 3.0% | — | View → | ||
| Lumber & Wood Products | 2.5% | — | — | View → | |
| Plastics & Rubber | 4.5% | — | — | View → | |
| Glass & Ceramics | 6.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Chemicals & Industrial Compounds | 3.5% | — | — | View → | |
| Precious Metals & Jewelry | 5.5% | — | — | View → | |
| Industrial Machinery | 2.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Agricultural Equipment | 2.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Construction Equipment | 1.5% | — | — | View → | |
| Power Generation Equipment | 2.5% | — | — | View → | |
| Mining Equipment | 2.0% | — | — | View → | |
| HVAC Equipment | 3.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Pumps & Compressors | 2.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Material Handling Equipment | 2.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Consumer Electronics | 1.5% | — | — | View → | |
| Semiconductors & Chips | 0.0% | Pre-lapse | View → | ||
| Computers & Servers | 0.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Telecommunications Equipment | 1.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Batteries & Energy Storage | 3.0% | — | — | View → | |
| LED & Lighting Equipment | 4.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Medical Devices | 1.5% | — | — | View → | |
| Scientific Instruments | 1.5% | — | — | View → | |
| Passenger Vehicles | 2.5% | — | Pre-lapse | View → | |
| Auto Parts & Components | 3.0% | Pre-lapse | View → | ||
| Commercial Trucks | 25.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Motorcycles & ATVs | 2.4% | — | — | View → | |
| Tires | 4.0% | — | — | View → | |
| EV Batteries | 3.4% | — | — | View → | |
| Clothing & Garments | 12.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Footwear | 10.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Textiles & Fabrics | 8.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Home Textiles | 9.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Leather Goods | 6.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Bags & Luggage | 7.5% | — | — | View → | |
| Fresh Produce | 5.0% | — | — | Pre-lapse | View → |
| Seafood | 2.0% | — | — | Pre-lapse | View → |
| Coffee & Tea | 0.0% | — | — | Pre-lapse | View → |
| Wine & Spirits | 4.5% | — | — | Pre-lapse | View → |
| Olive Oil & Cooking Oils | 3.5% | — | — | Pre-lapse | View → |
| Spices & Seasonings | 1.5% | — | — | Pre-lapse | View → |
| Packaged Foods | 6.0% | — | — | Pre-lapse | View → |
| Animal Feed | 1.5% | — | — | Pre-lapse | View → |
| Furniture | 5.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Toys & Games | 0.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Sporting Goods | 3.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Kitchen Appliances | 3.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Personal Care Products | 5.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Cleaning Products | 4.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Candles & Home Fragrance | 3.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Stationery & Office Supplies | 4.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Cement & Concrete | 1.5% | — | — | — | View → |
| Roofing Materials | 5.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Plumbing Fixtures | 4.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Electrical Wiring & Conduit | 4.5% | — | — | View → | |
| Insulation | 4.0% | — | — | — | View → |
| Paints & Coatings | 4.5% | — | — | View → | |
| Crude Oil & Petroleum | 0.1% | — | — | — | View → |
| Natural Gas (LNG) | 0.0% | — | — | Pre-lapse | View → |
| Solar Panels & Components | 3.5% | — | — | View → | |
| Wind Turbine Components | 2.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) | 2.0% | — | — | Pre-lapse | View → |
| Generic Drugs | 0.0% | — | — | Pre-lapse | View → |
| Medical Supplies (PPE, Syringes) | 3.0% | — | — | Pre-lapse | View → |
| Nutritional Supplements | 2.0% | — | — | Pre-lapse | View → |
| Paper & Packaging | 2.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Musical Instruments | 4.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Pet Products | 4.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Bicycles | 11.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Clocks & Watches | 5.0% | — | — | View → | |
| Art & Antiques | 0.0% | — | — | — | View → |
| Arms & Ammunition | 4.0% | — | — | — | View → |
| Marine Vessels & Parts | 1.5% | — | — | — | View → |
| Aircraft & Parts | 0.0% | — | — | Pre-lapse | View → |
Tap "View" for S232/S301 applicability details
US-Nicaragua Trade Relationship
The United States and Nicaragua maintain a trade relationship valued at $4B in 2024. Nicaragua trades with the US under standard Most Favored Nation (MFN) terms and is positioned in the Central America & Caribbean region. Principal US imports from Nicaragua span clothing garments, fresh produce, coffee tea, among other categories. The current effective tariff rate of 12.5% affects the competitiveness of Nicaragua as a sourcing origin across product categories.
Top Imports from Nicaragua
- clothing garments
- fresh produce
- coffee tea
- food
- seafood
Tariff Timeline — Nicaragua
The Section 232 action on pharmaceuticals and pharmaceutical ingredients took effect for the companies listed in Annex III to Proclamation 11020, with all remaining companies following on September 29, 2026. The duty is 100 percent ad valorem on patented pharmaceuticals and associated pharmaceutical ingredients, reduced to 20 percent for companies with onshoring plans approved by the Secretary (rising to 100 percent on April 2, 2030), 15 percent for Japan, the European Union, the Republic of Korea, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein jointly, and 10 percent for the United Kingdom. Generic pharmaceuticals and their associated ingredients, including biosimilar products, are expressly excluded.
The Section 301 forced-labor import duties were challenged at the U.S. Court of International Trade. The duties remain in effect pending the court's review; no injunction or stay has been issued.
Section 301 forced-labor import duties took effect at 12:01 a.m. eastern time on sixty investigated economies (10% on 17, 12.5% on 38, conditional net-of-MFN for EU/Taiwan at 10% and Japan/South Korea/Switzerland at 12.5%). Additive layer stacking on China's existing punitive Section 301; excludes Section 232 products and USMCA-qualifying goods.
Section 122 uniform 10% global surcharge lapsed to 0% by operation of law after its 150-day statutory limit (19 U.S.C. §2132). No Congressional extension was enacted (S.4049 is a repeal, not an extension); the CAFC appeal remains unresolved.
Proclamation 11045 established a Section 232 onshoring incentive for primary aluminum. It imposes no duty and changes no rate — the word 'percent' does not appear in its operative text. A company whose onshoring plan the Secretary approves may annually import a quantity of primary aluminum matching its planned U.S. facility's reasonably anticipated annual output at half the Section 232 rate otherwise in effect. Plans must commit to starting construction by January 20, 2029, refurbishment adjustments are capped at the value of the investment, and benefits may be rescinded — retroactively where fraud is found. Any HTSUS changes are left to a future Federal Register notice from the Secretary. The benefit is company-specific, quantity-limited and conditional, so 50 percent remains the correct rate for an ordinary importer.
The Section 232 investigation into commercial aircraft, jet engines, and aircraft/engine parts concluded that imports threaten to impair national security, but the President imposed NO tariff. The proclamation instead directs a 180-day negotiation window (through approximately January 5, 2027), continued monitoring, and reserves the possibility of alternative remedies in the future.
Proclamation 11032 adjusted the aluminum, steel and copper regimes without changing the 50 percent full-value rate. It expanded the temporarily-reduced 15 percent derivative tier to agricultural equipment and certain predominantly-residential HVAC systems and components; lowered the threshold for qualifying as made 'entirely' from American aluminum, steel or copper from 95 percent to 85 percent; and provided that for products of Canada and Mexico qualifying for USMCA preferential treatment, a 25 percent duty applies only to the non-U.S. content of the product.
Proclamation 11021 consolidated the aluminum, steel and copper Section 232 regimes into a single instrument and restated the full-value rate at 50 percent ad valorem — the headline rate did not move. Articles listed in its Annex I-A are dutiable at 50 percent unless a lower rate applies: 25 percent for United Kingdom products whose aluminum content was smelted or most recently cast in the UK (steel: melted and poured in the UK), and 10 percent for derivative articles whose aluminum content was smelted and cast in the United States. Derivative articles are separately set at 25 percent, with a temporarily-reduced 15 percent tier for fixed industrial machinery and power equipment. Russian-origin primary aluminum remains subject to the 200 percent rate from Proclamation 10522.
Section 122 enacted at 10% as uniform global surcharge on all imports (announced rate was 15%). Enacted under Trade Act of 1974 Section 122 authority following balance-of-payments concerns. Expires 150 days from enactment (~July 24, 2026). De minimis $800 exemption simultaneously suspended for all countries.
Section 232 duties took effect on medium- and heavy-duty trucks, their parts, and buses. Medium/heavy trucks and covered parts (core HTS 8704) carry 25%; buses (HTS 8702) carry a separate 10% tier. The duties are additive on existing MFN duties; light-duty pickups (HTS 8704.21) are excluded from the truck action.
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Compare countries →Frequently Asked Questions
The average effective tariff rate on imports from Nicaragua is currently 12.5%. This rate combines multiple tariff layers including the MFN base rate and any applicable Section 232, bilateral, or Section 301 duties — Section 122 itself lapsed to 0% on July 24, 2026, though a forced-labor Section 301 duty backfills it for roughly 60 covered economies. Actual rates vary by product category and HTS classification.
Nicaragua does not currently have a comprehensive trade agreement with the United States. Imports from Nicaragua are subject to standard MFN rates plus any applicable Section 301 duties — Section 122 itself lapsed to 0% on July 24, 2026, though a forced-labor Section 301 duty backfills it for roughly 60 covered economies.
The leading import categories from Nicaragua include clothing garments, fresh produce, coffee tea, food, seafood. Total bilateral trade reached $4B in 2024, reflecting the breadth of the US-Nicaragua trade relationship. Each product category carries its own tariff rate structure.
Section 122 previously applied a uniform surcharge on imports from Nicaragua, adding to the MFN base rate. That surcharge lapsed on July 24, 2026 when its 150-day statutory limit expired; for the roughly 60 economies covered, a forced-labor Section 301 duty took effect the same day and backfilled it. Products excluded from these measures include certain agricultural goods, pharmaceuticals, and Section 232 products.
Alternative sourcing countries similar to Nicaragua include Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador. These countries share similar trade profiles and may offer competitive tariff rates for certain product categories. Use our country comparison tool for a detailed side-by-side analysis.
US imports from Nicaragua totaled $4B in 2024. Nicaragua is located in the Central America & Caribbean region and trades with the US under standard MFN terms. The volume of trade makes tariff policy changes between the US and Nicaragua economically significant for both countries.