On October 14 (local time), the United States began imposing port entry fees on Chinese vessels.
According to the New York Times (NYT) and other sources, the U.S. government implemented a policy, as previously announced by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) in April, to impose a port entry fee of $50 per net ton on ships owned or operated by Chinese companies. This fee will be gradually increased to $140 per ton by 2028.
Additionally, for ships operated by companies from countries other than China but built in China, the higher of the two fees-either based on tonnage (from $18 per ton in 2025 to $33 per ton in 2028) or container count (from $120 per container in 2025 to $250 per container in 2028)-will be charged as the port entry fee.
This measure is intended to curb China's shipbuilding and shipping industries and to encourage the construction of U.S.-built vessels.
China has also responded by starting to impose port entry fees on American ships. On the same day, the Chinese Ministry of Transport announced the implementation of a "Special Port Entry Fee for U.S. Vessels."
Ships owned or operated by U.S. companies, organizations, or individuals; ships owned or operated by companies or organizations in which U.S. companies, organizations, or enterprises hold a direct or indirect stake of 25% or more; ships flying the U.S. flag; and ships built in the United States that dock at Chinese ports will be required to pay a fee of 400 yuan (approximately 80,000 won) per net ton.
The fee will rise to 640 yuan per net ton from April 17, 2026; to 880 yuan from April 17, 2027; and to 1,120 yuan from April 17, 2028. However, ships built in China and empty vessels entering Chinese shipyards for repairs will be exempt from this fee.
Recently, trade tensions between the United States and China have reignited. On October 9, China announced export controls on rare earth elements, and on October 10, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a 100% tariff on Chinese goods and plans to restrict exports of key software to China.
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