2026 HTS Revision 16: Section 201 Quartz Safeguard Tariff

2026 HTS Revision 16 adds a new safeguard. Under Proclamation 11051, imports of quartz surface products (slabs, countertops and tiles) pay an additional Section 201 duty from August 15, 2026, with a quarterly tariff-rate quota deciding whether the rate is 25% or 50%. It's set to run four years, with a small step down each August.

At a glance

What changed

Which quartz products are covered

New U.S. note 41 to Chapter 99 defines quartz surface products: goods made mostly of silica (more than any other single material, by weight) with a resin binder, sold as slabs, countertops, tiles and similar. Quarried stone is excluded.

The scope covers three statistical lines:

• 6810.99.0020
• 6810.99.0040
• 7020.00.6000

Not every product under these lines is a quartz surface product. That's especially true of 7020.00.6000, the catch-all for other articles of glass. If your goods don't meet the note 41(a) definition, the safeguard doesn't apply. When quartz is imported together with sinks, vanities or cabinets, only the quartz surface product is covered.

Quartz tariff rates: two headings, one quota

The quota is set in square meters per quarter (3,251,606 square meters a quarter in the first year), and unused quantity carries forward. The same rate applies in every column, and note 41(b) makes the duty cumulative: it adds to the regular Chapter 68 or 70 duty and to other Chapter 99 duties, such as Section 301 for China or a country rate. US tariff stacking rules covers how the programs combine.

Rates step down each year

Countries exempt from the quartz safeguard

Note 41(c) exempts the products of:

• Canada and Mexico;
• 13 free-trade partners: Australia, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Israel, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Singapore and South Korea;
• 100 listed developing countries, including Brazil;
• 17 Caribbean Basin countries and territories, including the Bahamas and Trinidad and Tobago.

Revision 16 also changed the unit of quantity for 7020.00.6000, effective the same day.

What it means for importers

On $10,000 of quartz slab under 6810.99.0020 from Vietnam:

The difference between in quota and over quota is $2,500 on every $10,000, and it depends on timing within each quarter. If you import quartz, track how quickly each quarter's quota fills, check your origin against the note 41(c) list, and confirm that your goods actually meet the quartz surface product definition before paying the duty on a glass or stone line. The duty calculator applies the safeguard by entry date and origin, and asks whether the quota is filled. For every 2026 revision in one place, see the 2026 HTS revisions hub.