Trump administration waives new Russia sanctions and tariffs under Graham Act

Overview

On October 16, 2026, President Donald Trump issued an executive order regarding the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 (Graham Act). The Graham Act, which was signed into law on September 18, 2026, provides for a range of sanctions, restrictions and duties relating to Russia. We previously posted a summary on the signing of the Graham Act in September.

The executive order provides for substantial new tariffs, including a 500% ad valorem increase in duties on goods from Russia and 100% ad valorem increases in duties on goods from certain countries that purchase Russian-origin oil or natural gas or facilitate Russian oil sanctions evasion. However, the executive order simultaneously waives the application of those duties and a broad range of the Graham Act’s sanctions and restrictions, as discussed in this post.

We note that the waivers do not have a specified expiration date. They remain in effect until the president or the secretary of state, in consultation with the secretary of the treasury and the United States trade representative (USTR), as appropriate, determines that further action is necessary.

New tariffs are currently waived

The executive order provides for three significant increases in duties:

• a 500% ad valorem increase in duties on goods from Russia;
• a 100% ad valorem increase in duties on goods from the five largest importers of Russian-origin crude oil and natural gas if the relevant country knowingly makes new purchases of Russian-origin crude oil or natural gas on or after October 18, 2026; and
• a 100% ad valorem increase in duties on goods from the five leading facilitators of Russian oil sanctions evasion.

These increases would apply in addition to other applicable duties, fees, taxes, exactions or charges. However, section 4 of the executive order waives the application of the duties under Sections 112 and 113 of the Graham Act and the executive order. Accordingly, the 500% and 100% duty increases are not currently being applied.

The executive order also waives a broad range of sanctions and restrictions contained in the Graham Act. The waived provisions address, among other matters, certain persons affiliated with or supporting the Russian government, Russian financial institutions and government-owned or controlled entities, transfers of funds involving Russia, investment in Russia, energy-related activity, Russian sovereign debt, financial messaging services and Russian uranium.

Existing Russia sanctions remain relevant

Importantly, the Graham Act waivers do not constitute a general waiver of preexisting U.S. sanctions relating to Russia. The executive order expressly provides that nothing in the order affects sanctions or other measures imposed under executive orders addressing the relevant Russia national emergency that were in effect immediately before the enactment of the Graham Act.

Accordingly, the waivers do not themselves lift the preexisting restrictions imposed under Executive Order 14066 in 2022, which prohibit, subject to applicable authorizations, the importation into the United States of specified Russian-origin energy products, including crude oil, petroleum and certain petroleum products, liquefied natural gas, coal, and coal products. Executive Order 14066 also prohibits new investment by U.S. persons in the Russian energy sector and certain facilitation of transactions that would be prohibited if undertaken by a U.S. person or within the United States.

These restrictions remain subject to applicable licenses and authorizations. Notably, on October 9, 2026, Office of Foreign Assets Control issued General License 135, which is intended to authorize certain transactions related to the sale, delivery, offloading and importation, including importation into the United States, of Russian-origin diesel fuel through April 7, 2027.

Monitoring and potential further action

Although the new Graham Act measures described above are currently waived, the executive order establishes an ongoing monitoring framework. USTR, in consultation with the secretaries of state, treasury and energy and other appropriate officials, is directed to monitor countries’ purchases of Russian-origin crude oil and natural gas and the facilitation of Russian sanctions evasion and to report regularly to the president. USTR must also inform the president of circumstances that may indicate a need for further action, including with respect to the waivers.

The framework therefore leaves open the possibility of further action if the administration determines that the current waivers should be modified or ended. We are closely monitoring updates and will update this post accordingly.

Key takeaways

The October 16 executive order represents an important step in implementing the Graham Act but does not currently give effect to the act’s new 500% and 100% tariffs or a broad range of its sanctions and restrictions. The administration has instead waived those measures while establishing a framework to monitor Russian-origin energy purchases and Russian oil sanctions evasion.

We emphasize that the waivers also do not amount to a broader relaxation of existing U.S. sanctions relating to Russia. Companies should continue to assess Russia-related transactions under existing U.S. restrictions and applicable licenses and authorizations while monitoring whether the administration modifies or ends the Graham Act waivers.

We are closely monitoring further developments relating to the implementation of the Graham Act and U.S. sanctions against Russia. We are also happy to discuss the issues above in further detail.

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