Fish

Trade and Tariffs

This sector is defined by the World Trade Organization Uruguay Round sectoral initiative on fish, and includes live fish as well as fresh, frozen, or processed fish and shellfish products.

Fish and fish products accounted for less than 1 percent of total U.S. industrial exports to Colombia in 2006, totaling less than $3 million. The top U.S. exports in this sector were shrimp, live fish, fish oil, fishmeal, and frozen fish fillets. Colombian tariffs range between 5 and 20 percent with an average of 18.9 percent in 2006.

Colombian exports to the United States in this sector totaled nearly $40 million in 2006, or 0.6 percent of total Colombian exports to the United States. Top Colombian exports in this sector were shrimp, rock lobster, fish fillets, and crabmeat. The United States’ tariffs on fish and fish products range between 0 to 35 percent, with an average of 2.0 percent.

Tariff Elimination

Tariffs will be phased out according to five tariff elimination categories: immediate elimination, equal cuts over five years, unequal cuts over five years, equal cuts over seven years, and equal cuts over ten years. Tariff elimination under the unequal five-year staging category will proceed with a 10 percent tariff cut in years one and two, a 30 percent cut in year three, a 20 percent cut in year four, and the remaining 30 percent tariff cut in year five.

For fish and fish products, 93 percent of U.S. exports will receive duty-free treatment immediately upon implementation of the Agreement. Tariffs on another 7 percent of exports will be eliminated over 5 years. Some products of negligible U.S. exports to Colombia will be subject to tariff elimination over ten years. Tariffs on high-priority U.S. fish exports such salmon, shrimp, and sardines will be eliminated immediately upon implementation of the agreement.

The United States agreed to consolidate all ATPA and ATPDEA tariff preferences into the final tariff elimination schedules. This means that most fish imports from Colombia will continue to receive duty-free treatment upon implementation of the Agreement. Canned tuna is not eligible for ATPA/ATPDEA preferences. For three tariff lines of canned tuna, the U.S. tariff will be phased out over ten years.

International Trade Administration
Manufacturing and Services
Office of Trade Policy Analysis