U.S. Tariffs on Bicycles and E-bikes Explained
What’s going on with tariffs on bicycles and e-bikes from China?
Yet another round of tariffs have been implemented by the United States on China. This addition of a 10 percent tariff will effectively increase the total tariff amount to 45 percent. What this means is that 45 percent will be added on top of pre-existing duties. For bicycles of the non-electric variety the pre-existing duty is 5.5 percent or 11 percent. For certain bicycle components, the pre-existing duties are between 5-11 percent. Electric bikes had zero percent pre-existing duties. This means that as of March 4, 2025, the current import duties and tariffs for bicycles are 50.5 percent and 56 percent, bicycle components between 50-56 percent, and e-bikes at 45 percent.
Should U.S. importers expect more tariffs?
Yes. Based on the current indicators from the U.S. government, it is extremely likely that more tariffs will be implemented within the short term, with the most immediate being the April 2, 2025 reciprocal tariffs announced by U.S. President Donald Trump. What the reciprocal tariffs will entail are still questionable, however if they are designed to levy the same amount of import duty certain countries place on imports originating from the United States, then it is very likely that the upcoming April 2 tariffs will expand beyond just imports from China. This means that bicycles, e-bikes, and bike parts from any country in the world that has import duties on similar goods from the United States, such as Taiwan, China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Cambodia - will be subject to tariffs.
For example, Taiwan has pre-existing import duties on bicycles from the USA at 6 percent and e-bikes at 20 percent. This means that the U.S. reciprocal tariff policy that may or may not be implemented against Taiwan-origin bicycles will be not be affected, but e-bikes will be increased from zero pre-existing duties to 20 percent.
What should you do?
U.S. based importers managing bike production in China or other parts of Asia will be extremely busy in the coming weeks, months, and years due to uncertainties on tariff policy changes. It will be important to observe how the upcoming April 2 tariffs are implemented. If indeed reciprocal tariffs based on each country’s import duties on U.S. goods are implemented, then it will be necessary to consider whether your product should continue to be produced in its current location or be temporarily relocated to a manufacturer based in a country with minimal impact from these policies. Contact Oerus today and we will help you review some potential options.
