Section 232 Exclusions Process Eliminated: What BIS Ended in 2025 and What Importers Face Now

Dateline: 15 October 2026. The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) eliminated the Section 232 aluminum and steel exclusions process through an interim final rule effective April 30, 2025 and published in the Federal Register on May 2, 2025. It was an interim final rule, not a final rule, and it took effect two days before publication.

The separate question of which derivative products get added to the tariffs is still open. BIS proposed 14 additional derivative articles on August 6, 2026, with comments due August 27, 2026.

Did BIS issue a final rule eliminating the exclusions process?

No. The document is an interim final rule, Federal Register document 2025-07676, titled "Adoption and Procedures of the Section 232 Steel and Aluminum Tariff Inclusions Process." BIS says the rule establishes the inclusions process and removes the exclusions process authorized by clause 3 of Presidential Proclamations 9704 and 9705 of March 18, 2018.

The dates matter for anyone citing the rule. The same document states it is effective April 30, 2025, and that comments were due by June 16, 2025. The Federal Register publication date is May 2, 2025. The docket is BIS-2025-0023 and the RIN is 0694-AK13.

Commerce also said it had good cause to skip the Administrative Procedure Act's notice-and-comment requirement and delayed effective date. In its own words, delay would be contrary to the public interest because it would postpone relief for U.S. manufacturers. That is the agency's justification, not an independent finding.

When did the exclusions process actually stop working?

Earlier than the rule. BIS says that under Proclamations 10895 and 10896 of February 10, 2025, Commerce stopped processing exclusion requests at 11:59 PM ET on February 10, 2025 and no longer accepts or issues exclusions from the steel and aluminum tariffs.

The April 30, 2025 BIS release said the same thing from the other direction: no new applications for product exclusions had been accepted after February 10, 2025. The 2025 rule formally removed the process from the regulations.

What happens to exclusions that were already granted?

They keep working for a limited time. BIS says exclusions already granted and activated as of February 10, 2025 remain effective until their expiration date or until their excluded volume is exhausted, whichever occurs first.

The Section 232 Exclusions Portal stays online in read-only mode to help administer those grants. BIS also publishes a public data extract of the portal. General Approved Exclusions and country-level "alternative arrangements" (exemptions, absolute quotas and tariff-rate quotas) were revoked effective 12:01 AM Eastern Time on March 12, 2025. BIS says EU Steel Extended exclusions were revoked the same day.

What replaced the exclusions process?

The inclusions process replaced it, and it points in the opposite direction. Exclusions let importers seek relief from the tariffs. Inclusions let U.S. manufacturers and trade associations ask to add derivative articles to the tariffs. In the April 30, 2025 release, BIS said the new process would shut down avenues for circumvention, a statement attributed to Under Secretary Jeffrey Kessler.

The 2025 inclusions process produced results. BIS added 407 HTSUS codes to the list of steel and aluminum derivative products in a notice published August 19, 2025. Steptoe reported the same publication date and the same count. The Federal Register notice says the duties applied to entries on or after 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time on August 18, 2025.

What did BIS propose on August 6, 2026?

BIS proposed adding 14 derivative articles to the Section 232 steel, aluminum and copper tariffs. The notice is 91 FR 50756 (document 2026-15961), and KPMG reported that BIS released it on August 4, 2026 ahead of Federal Register publication on August 6.

The notice relies on Proclamation 11021 of April 2, 2026. Per the notice, that proclamation authorized Commerce and the U.S. Trade Representative to add derivative articles when they jointly determine imports threaten national security or undermine the tariff actions. Comments had to be received by August 27, 2026 (regulations.gov ID BIS-2026-0331).

Rates are as proposed in the notice dated August 6, 2026. Commerce says most would be subject to the 25 percent tariff in clause (3) of Proclamation 11021 if included. Proclamation 11032 is dated June 1, 2026.

What does this mean for importers?

Importers cannot rely on a new exclusion to lower Section 232 steel or aluminum duties. The only relief route BIS describes is an existing grant, which lapses at its expiration date or when its volume runs out.

Practical points that follow from the documents:

1. Check legacy exclusions. Look at the expiration date and remaining volume on any exclusion granted and activated before February 10, 2025. The read-only portal and the public data extract are the BIS tools for this.
2. Screen products against the proposed list. Compare your HTSUS codes with the 14 articles above. If a code matches, the notice's proposed rates show the likely duty if the product is included.
3. Watch the Federal Register. The August notice is a request for comments. Duties on these articles apply only if Commerce and the Trade Representative later include them.
4. Use the contact BIS lists. Questions on the notice go to metals232inclusions@bis.doc.gov, per the notice.

For filled steel containers, the notice says the proposed tariff would apply only to the value of the metal container and not to the contents.

What's still unclear?

Final list. The August 2026 notice is a proposal. Whether Commerce and the Trade Representative have finalized any of the 14 articles is not established here, so importers should check the Federal Register directly for later notices.

Status of the 2025 inclusions process. BIS's Section 232 web page still describes the inclusions process, with submissions accepted in two-week windows three times per year. White & Case reported in April 2026 that Proclamation 11021 terminated the previous inclusions process and replaced it with an internal Commerce and USTR process. The BIS page does not mention the change, so the two sources differ on whether the old windows are still open.

Legal basis for skipping comment. Commerce justified both the 2025 interim rule and the structure of the 2026 notice on national-security grounds. The 2026 notice says the APA's comment requirements are inapplicable because it involves a military function of the United States, while still inviting comments. This article does not assess whether that position would hold up if challenged.

Weakest point of the "ended" framing. The exclusions process is closed to new requests, but granted exclusions still operate until they expire. "Eliminated" describes new relief, not every existing one.