US President Donald Trump announced on social media that the United States will remove a 10 percent tariff on Irish whisky. The tariff is currently applied to all European Union wine and spirit exports to the US.
"Everybody's been bugging me" to remove the tariff, Trump said at a trophy ceremony while attending a golf tournament at his Doonbeg golf resort in County Clare, Ireland. "And I said, 'On behalf of the United States of America, I am going to take the tariffs off [Irish whisky].'"
Irish whisky producers have been affected by the tariffs, which were part of the Trump administration's broader trade and import clampdown. In late April, Trump announced a zero-tariff policy for spirits from the United Kingdom, removing duties on Scotch and Northern Irish whisky after a visit from King Charles III and Queen Camilla.
The Scotch Whisky Association stated that the zero-tariff policy, which came into effect on July 24, was "welcome news for businesses on both sides of the Atlantic" and would provide "greater confidence to invest, grow exports, and support jobs and communities."
In May, the Irish Whiskey Association (IWA) had also called for tariff elimination to protect US spirit portfolios and consumers from market volatility and to support domestic companies handling Irish brands. In July, the administration reduced the tariff from 15 percent to 10 percent.
The IWA welcomed Trump's announcement and indicated it would continue to collaborate with its EU and US counterparts to reinstate the zero-for-zero tariff arrangement for all drinks exports. "Nothing exemplifies the US-Ireland trade relationship better than Irish Whiskey," said IWA Director Eoin O Caithain in a statement, expressing anticipation for the announcement's full implementation.
Trump's announcement at the golf tournament was met with cheers from the crowd. Specific details regarding the timeline for lifting the tariff were not immediately provided.
