PRIA Logo™
Title 19, Customs DutiesRelease 119-110

§2136 Reciprocal Nondiscriminatory Treatment

Title 19 › CHAPTER 12 — TRADE ACT OF 1974 › SUBCHAPTER I — NEGOTIATING AND OTHER AUTHORITY › Part 2 — Other Authority › § 2136

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

Trade deal duties and duty-free rules must apply to goods from any foreign country, whether they enter the U.S. directly or pass through another country. The President must decide, after all the trade talks finish or by the end of the five-year period starting January 3, 1975 (whichever comes first), whether a major industrial country failed to give U.S. businesses similar trade opportunities. "Major industrial country" here means Canada, the European Economic Community (and its member countries), Japan, and any other country the President names for this purpose.

Full Legal Text

Title 19, §2136

Customs Duties, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Direct and indirect imports
Except as otherwise provided in this chapter or in any other provision of law, any duty or other import restriction or duty-free treatment proclaimed in carrying out any trade agreement under this subchapter shall apply to products of all foreign countries, whether imported directly or indirectly.
(b)Presidential determination of whether major industrial countries have made substantially equivalent concessions to the United States
The President shall determine, after the conclusion of all negotiations entered into under this chapter or at the end of the 5-year period beginning on January 3, 1975, whichever is earlier, whether any major industrial country has failed to make concessions under trade agreements entered into under this chapter which provide competitive opportunities for the commerce of the United States in such country substantially equivalent to the competitive opportunities, provided by concessions made by the United States under trade agreements entered into under this chapter, for the commerce of such country in the United States.
(c)Major industrial countries
For purposes of this section, “major industrial country” means Canada, the European Economic Community, the individual member countries of such Community, Japan, and any other foreign country designated by the President for purposes of this subsection.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

This chapter, referred to in subsecs. (a) and (b), was in the original “this Act”, meaning Pub. L. 93–618, Jan. 3, 1975, 88 Stat. 1978, which is classified principally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

References in Text

note set out under section 2101 of this title and Tables.

Amendments

1998—Subsecs. (c), (d). Pub. L. 105–362 redesignated subsec. (d) as (c) and struck out former subsec. (c) which related to recommendations to Congress for legislation following a Presidential determination that a major industrial country failed to grant equivalent concessions.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

19 U.S.C. § 2136

Title 19, Customs Duties

Last Updated

Sep 22, 2026

Release point: 119-110