LATE UPUDATE – See bottom of the article

 

Last month we wrote about tariffs and their effect on shipping books to the U.S. from foreign countries. What we found was a jumble of uncertainty. Previously established law clearly exempted books and similar items from tariffs. That should have been the end of the story. Tariffs are someone else's problem. We can relax. But nothing is easy anymore.

 

Tariff rules have been changing almost daily recently, but even that isn't the half of it. The bigger problem is trying to figure out what the rules are. The regulations don't appear to all be in one place where you can see and understand them. A recent change may show up in some other, seemingly unrelated part of the legal code. Add to that, presidential edicts are being rapidly fired off and it is unclear whether they have the force of law. The best answer we could come up with is to tell Americans ordering from overseas to assume they will have to pay a tariff, and hope they luck out and none is charged. That is a totally unsatisfying answer, but sometimes the best answer is to hope for the best but prepare for the worst.

 

So, do we have any more clarity now a month later? The answer is no, more likely even less. Now it's not just American buyers who can't figure out what the rules are. It is the post offices of many foreign countries. The issue here has to do with de minimis shipments. These are shipments valued at less than $800. They have been free from tariffs. Now, the government is saying only packages worth less than $100 will so qualify. For book sellers and buyers, a lot of sales shipped from overseas to the U.S. are likely to fit into that $100-$800 range. As a press release from PostEurop, an association of European post offices, said in a recent understatement, “Critical issues and processes, such as customs duties collection, the data to be collected, and the interaction with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, are not yet clearly defined.” It is not clear to these post offices how much to charge or how to pay the taxes. The result is many overseas post offices are choosing to play it safe by simply refusing to ship these parcels to the United States, at least until they know more.

 

As of this writing, a few days before August 29 (when many of these tariffs are scheduled to go into effect), a long list of countries who either have, will if there aren't changes within a few days, or who are seriously considering stopping small postal shipments to the U.S. has been compiled. Some have described the discontinuance as temporary until they can figure out what the new rules require of them. From Europe the list includes Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Spain and the United Kingdom. From Asia and the Pacific there are Australia, India, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand. Recently added is North American neighbor Mexico.

 

Reasons for the change given by the U.S. may need to be taken with a grain of salt – unfair competition, smuggling of fentanyl, reprisals for various wrongs. Ultimately, money always plays a major role. Tariffs can be a source of billions of dollars in revenue. Ultimately, “tariffs” and “fees” are a euphemism for taxes. The government wants your money and this is another way of getting it, even if they would like you to believe someone else is paying it for you. No, taxes are always built into the price you pay.

 

Meanwhile, the issue raised a month ago, how are tariffs in general (not just on “deminimis” orders) applied and in what amounts remains a mystery. There is still not an obvious list of tariffs and it is virtually impossible to compile one while they remain a moving target. It is especially difficult as the administration has been imposing tariffs for non-economic political reasons, which can happen at any moment. India has been hit with a 50% tariff because it is importing oil from Russia. The same has been imposed on Brazil because it prosecuted a former President who attempted to overthrow the government when he lost an election. Perhaps someone doesn't like the precedent. Meanwhile, tariff rates vary by country, some tariffs have been suspended (China) which delays a firm answer on the amount of the tariff. Bad policies at least are understandable and people can makes plans to deal with them, but chaos leaves us unable to know what to do.

 

Hopefully, when we next look again in another month, the chaos will have subsided and we will understand the requirements. Book sellers, buyers, and everyone else will be able to move forward rationally with their buying and selling. Considering how chaotic everything coming from Washington seems these days, this may be a dream, but hopefully order will be restored, and without a need for troops on the streets or in the book stores to enforce it.

 

LATE UPDATE. A U.S. Court of Appeals has struck down most of the Trump tariffs in a 7-4 ruling. V.O.S. Selections, a wine and spirits importer, a group of other businesses, and 12 U.S. states sued Donald Trump in his capacity as President of the United States. The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled that the power to impose taxes is a Congressional power, and that Congress “did not unambiguously delegate its taxing power to the President in IEEPA (the International Emergency Economic Powers Act).” However, the court paused its ruling until October 14 to allow the President time to appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court. For now, then, the tariffs recently imposed remain in effect. In a social media post, President Trump wrote, “If these Tariffs ever went away, it would be a total disaster for the Country. If allowed to stand, this Decision would literally destroy the United States of America. It would make us financially weak, and we have to be strong." Speaking of his plan to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court, Trump wrote, “Tariffs were allowed to be used against us by our uncaring and unwise Politicians. Now, with the help of the United States Supreme Court, we will use them to the benefit of our Nation, and Make America Rich, Strong, and Powerful Again!” That is certainly one of the most eloquent defenses I've ever heard for raising our taxes. Hopefully, it will make you feel good, but they are still raising our taxes.