Heavy Equipment Tariffs in 2026: What Changed for Buyers and Sellers

Heavy equipment tariffs changed more in 2026 than in any year since 2018. The Supreme Court struck down the IEEPA tariffs in February, a temporary Section 122 surcharge came and went, Proclamation 11021 moved most imported machinery to a 25% Section 232 duty on full customs value in April, and Proclamation 11032 cut that to 15% for agricultural equipment and for construction equipment from partner economies in June. For anyone buying or selling used iron, the question is which of those actually reaches the price of the machine in front of you.

This guide lays out the current tariff stack, how exposure differs by country of origin, and what the used market data says so far. For the detailed duty math on tractors and what the OEMs said about pass-through, see the companion guide on the 2026 ag equipment tariff cut.

The 2026 Heavy Equipment Tariff Stack

Six policy actions touched heavy equipment pricing in 2026. Two of them are gone, and the Section 232 actions do most of the work on finished machines.

Sources: Proclamations 11021 and 11032; USTR Section 301 notices as summarized by EY; Supreme Court and Court of International Trade rulings. Links in the Sources list below.

Section 232: the duty that now hits the whole machine

Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 is the national-security authority behind the steel, aluminum and copper tariffs. Until April 2026, derivative products such as machinery generally paid the duty on their metal content. Proclamation 11021 changed that: from April 6, 2026 the duty applies to the full customs value of the imported product, at 50% for metal articles and 25% for most derivatives, with a temporary 15% rate for a list of fixed industrial machinery.

Proclamation 11032, signed June 1 and effective June 8, 2026, added agricultural equipment to that reduced 15% list for all origins. It also created a separate list (Annex I-C) for mobile industrial equipment such as forklifts, earth-moving machinery, non-agricultural tractors and mobile cranes: 25% in general, but a 15% combined rate for products of Argentina, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Japan, South Korea, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and EU member states. USMCA-qualifying Canadian and Mexican goods pay 25% on non-US content with a 15% minimum, and machines whose metal is at least 85% US-melted by weight qualify for 10%. The reduced rates run through December 31, 2027. Global Trade Alert estimates the June changes cut implied annual duties by about $3.4 billion on roughly $58 billion of imports.

Section 301: China duties stay, and the 2026 action skips Section 232 goods

The Section 301 China tariffs from 2018-2019 remain in force at 25% on Lists 1-3 and 7.5% on List 4A, and the Federal Circuit upheld Lists 3 and 4A in September 2025. On July 24, 2026 a separate Section 301 action replaced the expired Section 122 surcharge with 10% or 12.5% duties on goods from 60 economies. That action exempts goods already subject to Section 232, so most finished machines pay the Section 232 rate alone, plus the China duty where the origin is China.

IEEPA and Section 122: gone, with refunds still moving

On February 20, 2026 the Supreme Court held that IEEPA does not authorize the broad tariffs imposed under it. Refunds of roughly $165 billion are running through CBP's CAPE process and go to the importer of record, which for most new equipment means the manufacturer or distributor, not the buyer. The 10% Section 122 surcharge that followed ran from February 24 to July 24, 2026; the Court of International Trade ruled against it on May 7, 2026, but limited relief to the named plaintiffs, and the government appealed.

USMCA: the 2026 joint review

USMCA keeps most North American equipment trade duty-free under normal tariffs, and the June 2026 proclamation gives USMCA-qualifying construction equipment its own Section 232 formula. The agreement's 2026 joint review is the open question: tighter rules of origin would change which Mexican- and Canadian-assembled machines qualify for that treatment.

Who Pays What: Exposure by Country of Origin

Since June 8, the country of origin on the serial plate matters more than the badge. The same brand can land at 15% or 25% depending on which plant built the machine.

Rates are the Section 232 treatment under Proclamation 11032 for listed products, June 8, 2026 to December 31, 2027. Whether a specific model is listed depends on its HTS classification; check the import paperwork.

Three practical tiers follow from that table. Imported tractors and implements from any country now land at the same 15%, so Japanese, Korean, Indian and European tractor brands compete on a level duty footing. Construction equipment from Japan, Korea and the EU gets the same 15%, while China-, India- and Brazil-built construction machines stay at 25%, and China adds Section 301 on top. US-built machines pay no import duty on the finished unit, though imported components and metal inputs still carry Section 232 cost.

For model-level price ranges in the most import-heavy segments, see the used utility tractor price guide, the used mini excavator price guide and the Kubota vs John Deere vs Mahindra comparison.

What Tariffs Do to Used Heavy Equipment Prices

Tariffs reach used prices indirectly. Two mechanisms do most of the work:

1. Substitution from new to used. When duties push new sticker prices up, more buyers shop late-model used machines, which supports used values until the new-to-used gap settles.
2. Replacement-cost anchoring. Owners price used iron against what it would cost to replace today. When replacement cost rises, asking prices tend to follow.

A tariff cut stops that pressure but does not reverse it unless used inventory loosens. The August 2026 Sandhills Global data shows how much the result depends on the category. Used compact and utility tractor inventory was down 22% year over year with auction values up 1.7%, and 100-plus HP tractor auction values were up 4.45%. In construction, used heavy-duty equipment inventory was down 10.45% but asking values were down 1.55% and auction values down 1.29%, which Sandhills tied to slower sales and more cautious buyers. Medium-duty construction auction values were essentially flat, up 0.07%.

Manufacturers describe the same pattern from the new side. On its August 20, 2026 earnings call, Deere said used inventory of model-year 2023 and 2024 high-horsepower tractors is down nearly 40% from a year ago and that the spread between new and used values has largely normalized. CNH's August 3 results cut its estimated 2026 tariff drag after the Section 232 change to about 170 basis points of margin in agriculture and 470 in construction.

What this means for sellers

If you own a clean, late-model tractor or ag machine, tight used inventory is working in your favor. If you own heavy construction equipment, the August data says values are soft and sales cycles are longer, so pricing to recent comparable sales matters more than tariff headlines. The heavy equipment pricing guide and the guide on where to sell heavy equipment cover how to price and where to list.

Should You Buy, Wait, or Rent?

• Buy when you find the right unit if you need it now. The reduced Section 232 rates are set through December 31, 2027, so the duty side of pricing is about as predictable as it has been since 2024.
• Check origin on construction equipment. A Japan-, Korea- or EU-built machine landed after June 8, 2026 carries a lower duty than a China-built one, and that difference should show up in the price.
• Rent if your hours are low. Tariffs raise the cost of owning more than the cost of renting a machine already in a rental fleet, so low-utilization buyers should run the numbers both ways.

The renting vs buying heavy equipment guide walks through the break-even math, and the heavy equipment financing guide covers loan and lease options if you buy.

What to Watch Through 2027

• The December 31, 2027 sunset. Under Proclamation 11032 the 15% and 10% tiers end on that date and covered products revert to the Proclamation 11021 rates unless the administration acts again.
• The USMCA joint review. Changes to rules of origin would alter the Section 232 formula for Mexican- and Canadian-assembled machines.
• Section 122 appeal and refunds. If the Court of International Trade ruling holds and is extended beyond the named plaintiffs, the 10% paid between February 24 and July 24, 2026 could become another refund cycle.
• Battery and electric equipment. China-origin batteries and components remain under Section 301, which matters for electric heavy equipment economics.

Frequently Asked Questions About Heavy Equipment Tariffs in 2026