U.S. Releases New Limits on Duty- and Quota-Free Apparel Imported from Africa

Trade Update • Sept. 26, 2022

he Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements has announced the limits on duty- and quota-free imports of apparel articles assembled from regional and third-country fabric to be 1,176,838,540 square meters for the fiscal year 2023 under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).

The AGOA Acceleration Act of 2004 provides that the quantitative limitation for the 12-month period beginning October 1, 2022, will be an amount not to exceed 7% of the aggregate square meter equivalents of all apparel articles imported into the United States in the preceding 12-month period for which data are available.

For the one year beginning on October 1, 2022, and extending through September 30, 2023, the aggregate quantity of imports eligible for preferential treatment under these provisions is 2,353,677,080 square meters equivalent. Of this amount, 1,176,838,540 square meters equivalent is available to apparel articles imported from Africa under the special rule for lesser-developed countries. Apparel articles imported in excess of these quantities will be subject to otherwise applicable tariffs.

To benefit from AGOA, a good must be either wholly obtained or sufficiently manufactured in an AGOA country. Additionally, the goods must be “imported directly” from an AGOA-designated country. Sufficiently manufactured means that all 3^rd-country materials have undergone a substantial transformation, and at least 35% of the good’s value is added in the beneficiary country, with up to 15% of that value attributable to U.S. inputs.

Background

Initiated in October 2000, AGOA primarily designated 34 Sub-Saharan African countries as eligible for the trade benefits provided under AGOA. This number has increased to 38 countries in 2020.

Since its enactment, AGOA has been at the core of U.S. economic policy and commercial engagement with Africa. It provides eligible sub-Saharan African countries with duty-free access to the U.S. market for over 1,800 products, in addition to the more than 5,000 products that are eligible for duty-free access under the Generalized System of Preferences program.

For questions on these new limits on duty and quota-free apparel imported from Africa, please contact us, we’re here to help.