What Happened This Month In International Trade (August 2026)

Another busy month in international trade news. Here’s the roundup:

Administration:

• President Trump issued a proclamation imposing section 232 tariffs on certain imported unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), stating that the United States’ dependence on foreign-manufactured drones and critical drone components threatens to impair national security.
• The White House’s Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy published a report discussing transshipment. The Administration estimates potential illegal transshipment in the range of $34.2 billion to $89.6 billion.
• President Trump issued an Executive Order creating a new national-security framework that can block certain foreign-produced electrical-grid equipment from being imported, purchased, transferred, or installed in the United States.

Canada Tariffs:

• Canada announced that it is imposing tariffs of 15%, 25% or 50% on U.S. goods in a response to new 50% Section 338 tariffs on Canadian goods. The tariff changes match the 338 action dollar for dollar, and cover 6% of U.S. exports to Canada.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP)

• CBP filed an update with the CIT in the IEEPA refunds case. Over $132 billion in potential and certified refunds have been accepted for processing via CAPE. 272,029 CAPE declarations have been submitted, of which 191,494 passed the file validation. 22,170 refunds, totaling approximately $1.7 billion have not been transmitted to Treasury because ACH information has not been provided.
• CBP extended the Jones Act Waiver for 90 days – to November 15, 2026. CBP also implemented a new requirement that companies considering transportation on a foreign-flagged vessel must first send a written request to the Defense Department, the Maritime Administration, and CBP.
• CBP’s Office of Field Operations (OFO) released its 2026-2030 Strategy, outlining what transformations are required to advance OFO’s four Core Mission Areas: Secure Lawful Travel, National Security and Contingency Operations, Secure and Compliant Trade and Agriculture and Biological Threat Security.
• CBP published a federal register notice on August 19, 2026 announcing that, beginning September 18, 2026, it will immediately void importer of record numbers when the information on CBP Form 5106 is inaccurate or incomplete.
• CBP has delayed the launch of the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) refund tool Phase 3. It was originally set for Aug. 20 and is now delayed until further notice.

Courts

• A group of 25 states led by Oregon, Arizona and California filed a lawsuit at the CIT challenging the Section 301 forced labor tariffs as a violation of the Administrative Procedure Act, alleging that USTR’s investigation was rushed and failed to address comments.
• On August 10, 2026, the Department of Justice filed its opening brief in the consolidated Federal Circuit appeal challenging the Court of International Trade’s universal injunctions governing IEEPA duty refunds. The government argues that CBP has no authority to reliquidate finally liquidated entries on its own initiative. If the Federal Circuit vacates, importers with finally liquidated entries who have not filed suit will have no administrative path to a refund.
• The Court of International Trade upheld the Trump Administration’s decision to eliminate the de minimis exemption, concluding that IEEPA provides the President with the authority to do so. In reaching its decision, the court rejected the plaintiffs’ contention that IEEPA’s authorities are confined to common-law property rights.

Department of Justice

• Everlight Electronics of Taiwan agreed to pay the United States $5.15 million to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act, common law, and the Tariff Act by knowingly failing to pay duties owed on LEDs imported from China.

Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)

• OFAC announced a $60,764 settlement with Rice Lake Weighing Systems, Inc., a Wisconsin-based manufacturer, to settle potential civil liability for eight apparent violations of OFAC sanctions on Iran.

U.S. Department of Treasury

• On August 11, 2026, the Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued a final rule permanently removing the requirement for U.S. companies and U.S. persons to report beneficial ownership information (BOI) under the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA).

U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

• The FDA announced that the application window for the Voluntary Qualified Importer Program (VQIP) portal for fiscal year 2027 benefits will close on September 1, 2026.
• On August 10, 2026, the FDA proposed a rule that would convert its voluntary Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) notification program into a mandatory one. Comments are due December 9, 2026.

International

• China issued a coordinated set of export‑control measures on Aug. 5 targeting U.S. entities and certain U.S.-bound goods. The actions are in response to recent import restrictions imposed by the FCC and DHS’s addition of more than 40 Chinese companies to the UFLPA Entity List.

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