Trump Announces Trade Deal With Vietnam

Jul. 2, 2025
By: Pietro N. Bianchi

President Trump posted (announced) a trade deal with Vietnam on his Truth Social account. Trump stated that “Vietnam will pay the United States a 20% Tariff on any and all goods sent into our Territory.” As many of our readers are aware, the importer of record pays tariffs on imports. We will, of course, report if exporting countries begin paying tariffs in the future. If the posted deal becomes official, importers can expect to pay a 20% tariff on all imports from Vietnam, which is a significant decrease from the 46% tariff rate announced on “Liberation Day.”

In return for the reduced tariff rate, Trump stated that Vietnam will “give the United States of America TOTAL ACCESS to their Markets for Trade. In other words, they will ‘OPEN THEIR MARKET TO THE UNITED STATES,’ meaning that, we will be able to sell our product into Vietnam at ZERO Tariff.” Back in April, Vietnam reportedly offered to reduce tariffs on U.S. imports from its Most-Favored-Nation average of 9.4% to 0%. It is unclear if “TOTAL ACCESS” means that Vietnam will also eliminate non-tariff barriers to trade. However, Trump indicated that SUVs or large engine vehicles could be sold in Vietnam.

Further, although it is not yet clear how this will work in practice, Trump stated that Vietnam will pay a 40% tariff on any transshipping. Transshipment while falsely claiming origin of the country of transshipment is already a serious violation of the trade law with penalties including fines and imprisonment. If you have questions about tariffs, trade remedies, or transshipment, do not hesitate to contact an attorney at Barnes Richardson, & Colburn LLP.