On October 10, China’s Ministry of Transport issued an announcement regarding the imposition of special port fees on U.S. vessels. The announcement stated that effective October 14, special port fees would be levied on U.S. vessels.
The specific content of the announcement is as follows:
April 17, 2025, The Office of the United States Trade Representative announced measures under the Section 301 investigation targeting China’s maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding industries. Effective October 14, 2025, additional port service fees will be imposed on vessels owned or operated by Chinese enterprises, Chinese-flagged vessels, and Chinese-built vessels. This action severely violates relevant principles of international trade and the China-United States Maritime Transport Agreement, causing significant disruption to maritime trade between the two nations.
Therefore, starting from October 14, 2025, China will levy special port fees. And the special port dues for vessels shall be levied by the maritime administration authority at the port where the vessel calls：
- vessels owned by U.S. enterprises, other organizations and individuals;
- vessels operated by U.S. enterprises, other organizations and individuals;
- vessels owned or operated by enterprises or other organizations in which U.S. enterprises, other organizations and individuals directly or indirectly hold 25% or more of the shares (voting rights, board seats);
- vessels flying the U.S. flag;
- and vessels built in the U.S..
For the aforementioned vessels, a special port fee shall be charged on a voyage basis and implemented in stages. The specific charging standards are as follows (fees less than 1 net ton will be calculated as 1 net ton).
- Starting from October 14, 2025, a fee of RMB 400 (approximately US$56) per net ton will be charged for berthing at Chinese ports;
- Starting from April 17, 2026, a fee of RMB 640 (approximately US$90) per net ton will be charged for berthing at Chinese ports;
- Starting from April 17, 2027, a fee of RMB 880 (approximately US$123) per net ton will be charged for berthing at Chinese ports;
- Starting from April 17, 2028, a fee of RMB 1,120 (approximately US$157) per net ton will be charged for berthing at Chinese ports.
For vessels calling at several Chinese ports during the same voyage, the special port dues shall be paid only at the first port of call, with subsequent ports exempt from such charges. For the same vessel, the special port dues shall not be levied more than five times within a calendar year.
The specific implementation measures will be formulated by China’s Ministry of Transport.
China’s policy of imposing special port fees on U.S. vessels is a forceful response to the US’s imposition of fees on Chinese vessels arriving at U.S. ports. China also plans to gradually increase these fees by April 17, 2028, coinciding with the U.S.’s effective date.
It is worth noting that the timing of China’s announcement of port fee measures coincides with its inclusion of 3 U.S. enterprises in the Unreliable Entity List and 3 U.S. entities in the export control list. Among these lists, there are 3 ship-related enterprises.