CRIV CONNECTION

Author: Yasmin Morais, Foreign, Comparative & International Law Librarian – Collection Development at Harvard Law School Library

Tariffs have been in the news recently, and for those looking for resources on tariff data, since February 2010, the World Trade Organization (WTO), has provided to the public its free Tariff Analysis Online (TAO).

TAO provides access to two WTO databases— the Integrated Data Base (IDB), with content related to applied tariffs and imports, and the Consolidated Tariff Schedules (CTS), which provides information on member states’ binding commitments on maximum tariffs. The WTO’s Economic Research and Statistics Division is responsible for TAO’s content.

For members of the public, registration is required to use TAO. Government passwords are issued to Heads of Delegations to the WTO. Although free, there are restrictions on the use and dissemination of the data, and users must agree to these terms. There is also a link to a helpful user guide.

TAO complements the following additional resources on Tariffs:

• DataWeb – United States International Trade Commission (USITC).
• Tariff Profiles – WTO data on the tariffs imposed by approximately 170 countries.
• FTA Tariff Tool – Developed by the International Trade Administration, this tool allows you to search for the tariff that will be applied to a particular import or export, based on the trading partner country.

For useful background information on tariffs, the Congressional Research Service has recently published an “In Focus” report titled U.S. Tariff Policy: Overview, which offers an overview of the global trading system, a history of U.S. Tariff Policy, a chart of tariff rates over time by country, and sources of U.S. Tariff authority.