The Trump administration recently announced a new set of port fees targeting Chinese-built and Chinese-owned commercial vessels docking at U.S. ports. This move is part of a broader strategy to counter China’s dominance in global shipbuilding and maritime trade, and to stimulate the struggling American shipbuilding industry.
Chinese shipping companies and many owners of Chinese-built ships will now have to pay fees when they dock at U.S. ports. But under the more lenient version of the rules, the biggest shipping companies will most likely pay significantly less and smaller ones will be exempt.The Trump administration said the measures were necessary because China had used unfair trade practices like subsidies to become dominant in shipbuilding. The rules also aim to foster the growth of the American shipbuilding industry, which has withered in recent decades. The rules give shipping lines refunds on their fees if they buy American-made ships in the next few years.“The Trump administration’s actions will begin to reverse Chinese dominance, address threats to the U.S. supply chain and send a demand signal for U.S.-built ships,” Jamieson Greer, the head of the Office of the United States Trade Representative, which formulated the rules, said in a statement.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) indicated that the new fee structure followed their observations after a nine-month investigation that China’s maritime practices were “undercutting business opportunities” in this country.
Following a nine-month investigation into China’s acts, policies and practices “targeting the maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sectors for dominance,” the USTR determined that China “burdens or restricts U.S. commerce by undercutting business opportunities for and investments in the U.S.” maritime and shipping endeavors, thereby “creating economic security risks from dependence and vulnerabilities” and “undermining supply chain resilience.”
The fees apply to all vessels that are either built in China or owned/operated by Chinese companies. This includes ships operated by major Chinese firms such as Cosco, as well as non-Chinese companies with Chinese-built ships in their fleets.
For the first 180 days, the fees would be set at zero and are broken down into various categories. All charges are based on the net tonnage of a vessel. Container vessels can range from 50,000 to 220,000 tons.Service Fee on Chinese Vessel Operators and Vessel Owners of China:
- Effective as of April 17, 2025, a fee in the amount of $0 per net ton for the arriving vessel.
- Effective as of October 14, 2025, a fee in the amount of $50 per net ton for the arriving vessel.
- Effective as of April 17, 2026, a fee in the amount of $80 per net ton for the arriving vessel.
- Effective as of April 17, 2027, a fee in the amount of $110 per net ton for the arriving vessel.
- Effective as of April 17, 2028, a fee in the amount of $140 per net ton for the arriving vessel.
The fee will be charged up to five times per year, per vessel. The register did not break out the price per container.
This move is part of President Donald Trump’s recent executive order titled “Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance.” The President hopes to launch a sweeping initiative to revitalize the nation’s shipbuilding capacity, maritime workforce, and global shipping presence.
Trump hopes to create a U.S. strategic commercial fleet, expanding the number of U.S.-flagged vessels essential to national defense and economic security.
The order also requires USTR to consider proposing tariffs on ship-to-shore cranes manufactured, assembled, or made using components of Chinese origin, or manufactured anywhere in the world by a company owned, controlled, or substantially influenced by a Chinese citizen, as well as tariffs on other cargo handling equipment.The executive order further requires the Department of Homeland Security to enforce collection of Harbor Maintenance Fees and other charges, and to prevent cargo carriers from circumventing those fees by routing goods to ports in Mexico and Canada and then sending cargo into the United States via land borders.
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