In a Cargo Systems Messaging Service (CSMS) bulletin published on October 3, 2025, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) published a document that outlined how CBP intends to collect Section 301 vessel fees for vessels “owned, operated, or built in China, and for all foreign-built vehicle carrier vessels.

These fees were originally proposed in a pair of Federal Register Notices (FRN) and are divided into three Annexes:

• Annex 1 vessels will be subject to a fee of $50 per net ton for an arriving vessel owned or operated by a Chinese entity.
• Annex 2 vessels will be subject to whichever fee is higher of $18 per net ton or $120 for each container discharged from an arriving Chinese built vessel.
• Annex 3 vessels will be subject to a fee of $14 per net ton for an “arriving vessel classified as a vehicle carrier or roll-on/roll-off vessel.”

The vessel operator has the burden to determine if their vessel owes the above fees. Payment must be made directly though the Pay.gov website.

These Section 301 vessel fees will go into effect on October 14, 2025.

CSMS #66427144 and the guidance document can be found here:
https://content.govdelivery.com/bulletins/gd/USDHSCBP-3f59908?wgt_ref=USDHSCBP_WIDGET_2

The “Notice of Action and Proposed Action in Section 301 Investigation of China’s Targeting the Maritime, Logistics, and Shipbuilding Sectors for Dominance” FRN can be found here:
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/04/23/2025-06927/notice-of-action-and-proposed-action-in-section-301-investigation-of-chinas-targeting-the-maritime

The “Notice of Proposed Modification of Action in Section 301 Investigation of China's Targeting the Maritime, Logistics, and Shipbuilding Sectors for Dominance” FRN can be found here:
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/06/12/2025-10660/notice-of-proposed-modification-of-action-in-section-301-investigation-of-chinas-targeting-the