The Trump administration is proposing to extend its suspension of port fees targeting China-linked vessels for another two months, pushing their potential return into January 2027 as Washington and Beijing continue negotiations over China's dominance of global shipbuilding, gCaptain reported, citing a Federal Register notice published on October 26. The current one-year suspension is set to expire on November 9.
Source: gCaptain, reporting the USTR Federal Register notice
"The United States is continuing to engage with China with the goal of obtaining the elimination of the acts, policies, and practices at issue in the investigation," the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) said in the notice. Under the proposal, the measures would remain suspended from November 10, 2026 through January 9, 2027, and shipping companies would not incur liability for port fees under Annexes I, II and III of the original Section 301 action during that period.
Source: gCaptain, quoting USTR
What stays on hold — and the deadline to comment
The suspension covers port fees on vessels owned or operated by Chinese entities, on Chinese-built vessels, and on certain foreign-built vehicle carriers, as well as duties on Chinese ship-to-shore cranes and cargo-handling equipment, according to reporting of the same notice. The proposal is not yet final: USTR will accept written comments through its portal under docket USTR-2026-0694 until October 30, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
Source: All About Shipping, reporting the USTR notice
Washington began collecting the fees on October 14, 2025, but suspended them on November 10 that year — meaning they were in effect for less than four weeks — after President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to suspend them as part of a broader trade agreement reached in South Korea, gCaptain reported. China also suspended its retaliatory fees on US-linked vessels. Global Trade Magazine, reporting the same proposal, said the extension would give both sides more time to negotiate while shipping companies get another reprieve from potentially significant charges at US ports.
Source: Global Trade Magazine, reporting the USTR proposal
The fees grew out of a Section 301 investigation into China's targeting of the maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sectors. The proposed two-month extension gives short-term certainty to owners, operators and charterers of affected vessels, but it does not resolve whether the fee schedule would resume in January at its earlier levels or at higher scheduled levels, reporting of the notice noted.