President Trump Announces US-UK Agreement as First Step in Renewed Trade Agenda
The United States and the United Kingdom have agreed to significant tariff concessions under the two countries' Economic Prosperity Deal (EPD), including a 10% preferential tariff on up to 100,000 UK vehicle imports annually and the elimination of the United Kingdom's 20% tariff on US beef. The agreement, which aims to expand market access and reinforce reciprocal trade ties, was first announced by US President Donald Trump (R) on 8 May 2025 (see US President Trump Announces Comprehensive US-UK Trade Deal, Marking New Era in Bilateral Relations (8 May 2025)). The White House published the general terms of the EPD along with a fact sheet on the same day. President Trump also held a press conference at the Oval Office to formally introduce the deal, with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer patched in via speakerphone. Prime Minister Starmer hailed the day as fantastic and historic.
Under the EPD, the United States and the United Kingdom have agreed to:
- remove the United Kingdom's 20% tariff on US beef and create a 13,000 metric ton duty-free quota for US beef exports;
- reallocate 13,000 metric tons of the US global beef tariff-rate quota (TRQ) specifically for the United Kingdom;
- open a 1.4 billion liter duty-free TRQ for US ethanol exports to the United Kingdom;
- set a 10% tariff rate on up to 100,000 UK vehicle imports annually, with a 25% rate applying to imports above that threshold;
- establish most favored nation (MFN)-rate quotas for UK steel, aluminum, and derivative products, contingent on the United Kingdom meeting US supply chain security and ownership standards;
- negotiate preferential tariff treatment for UK pharmaceutical products, subject to the outcome of a forthcoming US Section 232 national security investigation and UK compliance with supply chain integrity requirements;
- apply rules of origin to ensure that only qualifying US and UK goods benefit from the preferential terms, thereby preventing third-country circumvention; and
- consider, during negotiations, the United Kingdom's request to reduce existing US tariffs imposed under executive authority or by Congress.
In addition to tariff measures, the United States and the United Kingdom have agreed to:
- enhance agricultural market access by addressing non-science-based sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) barriers and strengthening cooperation on export verification programs;
- mutually recognize conformity assessment bodies, granting each side's testing and certification entities equal treatment;
- negotiate new Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRAs) for industrial goods and advance talks on an agreement covering services domestic regulation;
- launch negotiations on digital trade provisions, including those covering digital services (such as financial services), paperless trade, and digitalized customs procedures for goods movement;
- strengthen alignment on economic security, including cooperation on investment screening, export controls, and ICT vendor security;
- reaffirm commitments under the Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) and address procurement implementation under the UK's Procurement Act 2023;
- negotiate customs cooperation provisions to address duty evasion, illegal transshipment, and other evasion schemes; and
- discuss high-standard commitments related to labor practices, environmental policies, and intellectual property rights enforcement.
The trade deal comes after a series of aggressive US tariff actions introduced under President Trump's trade policy agenda, aimed at protecting domestic industries from what President Trump characterized as unfair international competition.
Visit our Tax Research Platform for prior coverage on US tariffs, see:
- President Trump Orders 100% Tariff on Foreign-Produced Films; White House Says No Final Decision Yet (6 May 2025); US President Trump Issues Executive Order to Prevent Tariff Stacking, Proclaims Modified Automobile Tariff Offsets to Incentivize Domestic Production (30 April 2025); US Customs and Border Protection Applies New Duties on Chinese Imports (25 April 2025); US Escalates Trade Measures with 245% Tariff on Chinese Imports Amidst New National Security Push on Critical Minerals (16 April 2025); United States Flips on Electronics Tariff Exemptions: Customs Border Protection Says Excluded, President Trump Says Not So Fast (14 April 2025); China Raises Counter-Tariffs to 125% Following US Tariff Hike (11 April 2025); United States Clarifies China Tariffs Are 145%, Not 125% (11 April 2025); United States Pauses Tariffs for Most Countries for 90 Days, Hikes China Tariffs to 125% (10 Apr. 2025); United States Slaps Additional 50% Tariff on Chinese Imports, Bringing Total Tariff Rate to 104% (9 April 2025); China Retaliates Against US Tariffs with New Countermeasures (4 April 2025); Trump Administration Rolls Out Sweeping 10% General Tariff on All Imports, Reciprocal Elevated Duties Targeting EU, 53 Other Countries (3 April 2025); and President Trump Doubles Down on Tariffs as China Fails to Act on Opioid Crisis (4 March 2025).