USTR Section 301 Determination of Brazil’s Unreasonable Acts, Policies, and Practices

WASHINGTON – Today, the United States Trade Representative determined, pursuant to Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, that certain acts, policies, and practices of Brazil related to digital commerce and electronic payment services; preferential and unfair rates; enforcement of the fight against corruption; protection of intellectual property; access to the ethanol market; and illegal deforestation are unreasonable and burden or restrict U.S. commerce, and therefore may be actionable under Section 301(b) of the Trade Act.

Following this determination, the U.S. Trade Representative proposed a responsive action for public comment, while the United States continues to work intensively with Brazil to find a solution to its concerns.

“I initiated this Section 301 investigation at the request of President Trump to address ongoing and pervasive concerns in the United States regarding certain Brazilian trade policies and practices. Over the past year, President Trump and I have had several constructive meetings with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and his Cabinet, which have accelerated in recent weeks,” Ambassador Jamieson Greer said. “However, we continue to have substantial differences in resolving the issues identified in this investigation. I look forward to continuing our engagement with the Brazilian government ahead of the statutory deadline of July 15, 2026 to take response action.”

To ensure they are considered, interested persons must submit their requests to appear at the hearing, accompanied by a summary of the testimony, no later than June 22, 2026.

Written comments are due by July 1, 2026.

The USTR will hold a hearing on the proposed action on July 6, 2026.

A copy of the Federal Register notice setting forth the U.S. Trade Representative’s determination on the possibility of legal action and the proposed action is available here.

A feedback package regarding the survey will be available here.

A role for requests to appear at the public hearing to be held as part of this investigation will be available here.

Background

Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended (Trade Act), is intended to combat unfair foreign practices affecting U.S. commerce. Section 301 may be used to respond to unjustifiable, unreasonable, or discriminatory foreign government practices that burden or restrict U.S. commerce. A Section 301(b) investigation examines whether the acts, policies, or practices are unreasonable or discriminatory and burden or restrict U.S. commerce.

At the direction of the President, on July 15, 2025, the United States Trade Representative initiated an investigation pursuant to Section 302(b)(1)(a) of the Trade Act regarding acts, policies, and practices of the Government of Brazil related to digital commerce and electronic payment services; preferential and unfair rates; enforcement of the fight against corruption; protection of intellectual property; access to the ethanol market; and illegal deforestation.

Pursuant to Section 304(b)(1)(A) of the Trade Act, USTR provided the public and interested persons with an opportunity to present their views through a public comment process and public hearing. The USTR received testimony from more than 30 witnesses and more than 295 comments and rebuttal comments. The United States Trade Representative today determined that certain acts, policies and practices of Brazil were unreasonable or discriminatory and hindered or restricted United States commerce, and therefore were actionable under section 301(b)(1) of the Trade Act. Relevant laws, policies and practices are:

Digital Commerce and Electronic Payment Services: Brazilian courts have issued secret orders ordering U.S. social media companies to remove certain political content and suspend the profiles of U.S. residents, sometimes globally, and prohibiting the platforms from disclosing these orders to profile owners. Brazilian courts have also subjected U.S. social media companies to financial liability for failure to comply with these orders by imposing significant fines for non-compliance; restrict their access to assets, accounts and payment processing systems in Brazil; and in at least one case, shutting down a site entirely. Brazil has also unfairly disadvantaged U.S. companies engaged in competing electronic payment services, including through policies that favor its national champion. Unfair preferential tariffs: Pursuant to partial-scope preferential trade agreements with Mexico and India – covering sectors in which Mexico and India are advanced and globally competitive producers – Brazil provides lower preferential tariff treatment to hundreds of Mexican and Indian products across multiple sectors. Anti-corruption enforcement: Brazil does not take sufficient enforcement measures to combat bribery and corruption. Protection of intellectual property: Brazil fails to sufficiently enforce its criminal laws and customs regulations to combat counterfeit products; fails to address the unreasonable delay its authorities take in examining patent applications, particularly biopharmaceutical patents; and fails to implement consistent and continuous anti-piracy measures. Ethanol Market Access: In 2017, Brazil abruptly discontinued its previously balanced tariff treatment for ethanol and has since failed to provide reciprocal tariff treatment for U.S. ethanol exports. Illegal deforestation: Although it has a legal framework to combat illegal deforestation, Brazil has historically failed to effectively enforce this legal framework, and illegal deforestation persists.

The US Trade Representative also decided to propose reactive measures as part of this investigation. As noted in the Federal Register notice, the public is invited to provide written comments by July 1, 2026, on the proposed action.

The USTR will hold a hearing on the proposed action on July 6, 2026. As noted in the Federal Register notice, interested persons are encouraged to submit requests to appear at the hearing by June 22.

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