Antidumping Duties on Chinese Porcelain Tile in 2026: What US Buyers Need to Know
Jose Cabrera · May 20, 2026
If you have been sourcing porcelain tile from China for more than a few years, your landed cost math has changed — probably more than once. Antidumping and countervailing duties on Chinese ceramic and porcelain tile have been in place since 2010 and have been revised and expanded multiple times since. In 2026, the combined duty burden for most Chinese tile makes it less cost-competitive than buyers who have not recalculated recently may assume.
Here is what the duties are, how they work, and what the alternatives look like in real numbers.
What antidumping duties on tile actually are
Antidumping duties (ADD) are imposed when the US Department of Commerce determines that a foreign manufacturer is selling goods in the US below fair market value. Countervailing duties (CVD) are imposed when a foreign government is found to be subsidizing the manufacturer in ways that give it an unfair cost advantage.
For Chinese ceramic and porcelain tile, both sets of duties have been in effect since the International Trade Commission and Department of Commerce issued orders following a 2010 petition by US tile manufacturers. The orders cover tile classified under HTS subheadings 6907.10, 6907.21, 6907.22, 6907.23, and related codes — meaning they cover essentially all Chinese floor and wall tile.
The ADD rate is factory-specific. The Department of Commerce establishes an individual rate for each Chinese manufacturer named in the review, based on their pricing and cost data. Manufacturers that did not participate in the review, or are not specifically listed, fall into the "all-others" rate, which is typically the highest rate assigned.
The current duty structure (2026)
For a typical Chinese porcelain tile shipment under HTS 6907.21, the duty stack looks like this:
Base import duty: 8.5% on CIF value. This applies to all origins including China.
Antidumping duty: Ranges from 0% (a small number of verified low-rate factories) to 103.83% for most "all-others" manufacturers, and up to 330%+ for factories found to be circumventing orders. The most commonly cited rate for non-reviewed Chinese factories is 103.83%.
Countervailing duty: Typically 11.45–13.82% for most Chinese manufacturers, calculated separately on the CIF value.
Section 301 tariff: An additional 7.5% imposed in 2018 on most tile HTS codes under the US-China trade actions.
For a typical shipment from a non-reviewed Chinese factory:
- Base duty: 8.5%
- ADD: 103.83%
- CVD: ~12%
- Section 301: 7.5%
- Total combined rate: approximately 131.8% on CIF value
On a $7,000 FOB container with $2,400 in freight (CIF: $9,400), that is roughly $12,389 in combined duties — before customs broker, terminal, and trucking. The total landed cost on a container that looks cheap at $7,000 FOB lands north of $24,000.
Who has a low or zero ADD rate
A limited number of Chinese factories have participated in annual administrative reviews and established individual lower rates. Some have achieved rates near zero. If your supplier claims a low rate, you can verify it through the CBP Antidumping and Countervailing Duty database — the official source is ACE (the Automated Commercial Environment) or you can search the Federal Register for the most recent administrative review results.
The catch: a factory's ADD rate can change after each annual review. A factory with a 2% rate this year may have a 45% rate next year if their pricing data shifts. Any buyer with a long-term relationship with a specific Chinese factory needs to verify the current rate before each significant order, not just once.
What happens if CBP disagrees with the classification
CBP has authority to reclassify shipments and assess additional duties after the fact. If your customs broker classifies a load as 6907.22 (lower base duty, and potentially different ADD applicability) and CBP determines it is actually 6907.21, they will assess the difference plus interest. If CBP determines that the claimed ADD rate is incorrect — for example, that the shipment came through a transshipment country to avoid the China ADD orders — the liability is the full applicable rate plus potential penalties.
Transshipment fraud, where Chinese tile is shipped through Vietnam, Malaysia, or another country to falsely claim non-Chinese origin, is an active enforcement focus for CBP. Buyers who unknowingly purchase transshipped tile can still be held liable for the correct duty.
The USMCA alternative: Mexico at zero duty
Mexican porcelain tile under a valid USMCA Certificate of Origin enters the US at 0% duty — no antidumping exposure, no Section 301, no CVD. The tile must be manufactured in Mexico, not just assembled or relabeled there, and the Certificate of Origin must be issued by the Mexican factory.
In 2026, several Mexican factories produce rectified porcelain tile at quality levels competitive with Chinese mid-range product at FOB prices that, after accounting for the duty gap and shorter lead times, land in Miami at lower total cost than comparable Chinese tile under the standard ADD rate.
The landed cost comparison on a 40HC container of 80×80 rectified polished tile:
| | Chinese (all-others ADD rate) | Mexican (USMCA) | |-|-------------------------------|-----------------| | FOB price | $4,800 | $6,100 | | Freight to Miami | $2,400 | $1,850 | | CIF value | $7,200 | $7,950 | | Base duty (8.5% / 0%) | $612 | $0 | | ADD (103.83%) | $7,476 | — | | CVD (~12%) | $864 | — | | Section 301 (7.5%) | $540 | — | | Customs broker + terminal | $655 | $585 | | Inland to Doral | $480 | $480 | | Total landed Miami | $18,827 | $9,015 |
The Chinese load costs more than twice the Mexican load, landed. The $1,300 difference in FOB price is irrelevant against a $9,800 difference in landed cost.
This comparison uses the all-others ADD rate. If your Chinese supplier has a verified low individual rate — say 5% — the math looks different. But that calculation needs to be done with the current verified rate, not a rate from three years ago.
Spanish and Italian tile: no antidumping exposure
European tile from Spain and Italy carries the 8.5% base duty with no ADD, CVD, or Section 301 exposure. For mid-to-premium segments where Chinese tile is not the origin of choice anyway, European sourcing avoids the duty complexity entirely.
The practical implication: any buyer comparing Chinese and European tile should be comparing landed costs with the actual ADD rate applied, not FOB prices. At the standard all-others rate, European tile is often cheaper landed despite a higher FOB. For a full origin-by-origin comparison, see porcelain tile sourcing: Italy vs Spain vs Mexico vs China.
What to do before your next order
Three steps before committing to a Chinese tile order:
First, verify your supplier's current ADD rate in the CBP ACE database or ask your customs broker to confirm it. Do not rely on what the supplier tells you or what the rate was last year.
Second, calculate the full landed cost including all duty layers on the CIF value, not just the FOB price. Include freight, ALL applicable duties, broker fee, terminal, and inland. For a detailed walkthrough of landed cost components, see landed cost explained.
Third, compare that landed number against a quote from a Mexican or Spanish origin on the same format and finish. The comparison may be closer than expected — or it may already favor the alternative.
For the exact HTS codes and duty rates applicable to your product, see our complete guide to porcelain tile import duties and timelines.
Every quote from Nexo includes a complete duty breakdown by origin so you can make the comparison on real numbers before placing an order. Request a tile quote →