Trump raises global tariff rate on US imports to 15%
Updated / Saturday, 21 Feb 2026 19:16
WASHINGTON, DC – FEBRUARY 20: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a press briefing at the White House on February 20, 2026 in Washington, DC. The U.S. Supreme Court on February 20 ruled against Trump’s use of emergency powers to implement internatio
Donald Trump said the 15% global tariff will be effective immediately
US President Donald Trump has said he will raise a temporary tariff from 10% to 15% on US imports from all countries, the maximum level allowed under the law, after the US Supreme Court struck down his previous tariff program.
The move came less than 24 hours after Mr Trump announced a 10% across-the-board tariff yesterday after the court’s decision.
The ruling found the president had exceeded his authority when he imposed an array of higher rates under an economic emergency law.
The new levies are grounded in a separate but untested law, known as Section 122, that allows tariffs up to 15% but requires congressional approval to extend them after 150 days.
No president has previously invoked Section 122, and its use could lead to further legal challenges.
Trade experts and congressional aides are skeptical the Republican-majority Congress would extend the tariffs, given polls that show growing numbers of Americans blame the duties for higher prices.
In a post on Truth Social, President Trump called the Supreme Court’s decision “ridiculous, poorly written, and extraordinarily anti-American”.
Mr Trump said the 15% tariff rate would be effective immediately.
He said that many countries have been “ripping” the US off for “decades, without retribution”, and added that he was hiking the import levies “to the fully allowed, and legally tested, 15% level”.
“During the next short number of months, the Trump Administration will determine and issue the new and legally permissible Tariffs,” he said.
According to a White House fact sheet, exemptions from the tariffs remain for sectors that are under separate probes, including pharma, and goods entering the US under the US-Mexico-Canada agreement.
It comes after a number of US Democrats demanded that Mr Trump issue refunds after the Supreme Court ruling.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker sent Mr Trump an invoice demanding nearly $9 billion in tariff refunds for families in his state.
Mr Pritzker urged the White House to “cut” the cheque after justices ruled 6-3 that Mr Trump had exceeded his authority by invoking emergency powers to impose tariffs that reshaped global trade and pushed up prices at home.
“Your tariff taxes wreaked havoc on farmers, enraged our allies and sent grocery prices through the roof,” Mr Pritzker wrote, warning further legal action could follow if compensation was not forthcoming.
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