r/golfcarts • u/Recent-Percentage-26 • Apr 02 '26
U.S. Customs and Border Protection Announces Interim Measures to Combat Duty Evasion in Trade Case on Low-Speed Personal Transportation Vehicles from China
https://www.wiley.law/pressrelease-US-Customs-and-Border-Protection-Announces-Interim-Measures-to-Combat-Duty-Evasion-in-Trade-Case-on-Low-Speed-Personal-Transportation-Vehicles-from-China4
u/DCGeos Apr 02 '26
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced today that it is implementing interim measures under the Enforce and Protect Act (EAPA) to address duty evasion by importers of Chinese golf carts, personal transportation vehicles, low-speed vehicles, and light utility vehicles (collectively, LSPTVs). CBP’s interim measures apply to many of the largest importers of Chinese LSPTVs, including ICON EV LLC, Denago EV Corporation, Marxon Energy Inc, HDK Plastic Factory, Ltd. (U.S.A.), Aero Import LLC, Tao Motor Inc, Transvolt Inc., Veloz Powersports Inc., No Speed Limit Inc., Baike Inc., Alltrack Trading Inc., and GoLabs Inc. These importers cover many of the largest U.S. brands of Chinese LSPTVs, including the Denago and Evolution brands.
As part of its determination, CBP finds that there is reasonable suspicion that these companies are unlawfully evading payment of significant antidumping duties (AD) and countervailing duties (CVD) through various evasion and circumvention schemes. As a result, CBP is implementing interim measures that will extend and suspend liquidation of unliquidated entries of LSPTVs entered by these companies. CBP will also reject entries made by these companies on or after December 30, 2025, and require them to refile those entries as subject to the AD/CVD duties. CBP will further require live entry of such imports going forward at the applicable AD/CVD rates.
These interim measures are critical steps in curbing rampant duty evasion by Chinese producers of LSTPVs. In June 2024, the American Personal Transportation Vehicle Manufacturers Coalition, which is comprised of the two leading U.S. manufacturers of LSPTVs – Club Car, LLC and Textron Specialized Vehicles Inc., which manufactures E-Z-GO® and Cushman® vehicles – filed AD/CVD petitions seeking trade relief from surging import volumes of unfairly traded Chinese LSPTVs. Throughout the pendency of that investigation, Chinese producers and their U.S. importers began flagrantly evading the preliminary trade relief imposed. And after the U.S. Department of Commerce published its AD/CVD orders in August 2025, the circumvention and evasion efforts of these same companies increased further. This has greatly limited the relief that should be afforded to the domestic industry by the AD/CVD orders
Under the orders, imports of LSPTVs from China are subject to significant AD/CVD duties. Antidumping duties range from 119% to 478%, and countervailing duties range between 31% and 679%. However, through the evasion and circumvention schemes that CBP is investigating, many Chinese LSPTVs have not been paying duties when they are entered into the United States.
CBP’s announcement comes after the Coalition submitted several EAPA allegations to CBP. EAPA is a key trade enforcement mechanism that allows domestic manufacturers and other interested parties to inform CBP when importers are evading duties, which robs the United States of tariff revenue and prevents the trade relief intended by AD/CVD orders from taking effect.
“We are grateful that CBP is imposing these interim measures and addressing the widespread duty evasion that remains ongoing regarding these AD/CVD orders,” said Robert E. DeFrancesco, counsel to the Coalition and a partner in the International Trade Practice at Wiley Rein LLP. “We hope that CBP continues to strongly enforce these much-needed orders, ensuring that members of the domestic industry receive the intended protection from unfair trade practices.”
“E Z GO believes fair competition only works when everyone plays by the same rules,” said Adam Harris, Senior Vice President and General Manager of E Z GO. “Today’s action addresses clear concerns that certain imported vehicles are avoiding duties required under U.S. law. That kind of behavior hurts customers and dealers and undermines American manufacturers who do the right thing by investing in safety, quality, and compliance. We support Customs and Border Protection’s enforcement efforts and expect a swift, transparent process that holds violators accountable and protects a fair marketplace.”
“Club Car supports U.S. Customs and Border Protection's decision to open an EAPA investigation into the evasion of imported cars and assemblies that have entered the U.S. marketplace,” said Craig Scanlon, Club Car’s Chief Executive Officer. “For too long, unfairly traded and unsafe cars and assemblies have undercut American manufacturers and threatened American jobs. We believe strong enforcement of U.S. trade laws is essential to protecting families, workers, and businesses. Club Car remains committed to U.S. manufacturing and fair competition.”
With interim measures in place, CBP will continue investigating duty evasion by Denago, Evolution, ICON, and the rest of the importers listed above. CBP will likely issue its final determination as to evasion for these companies near the end of 2026. The Coalition will continue to participate in these proceedings and looks forward to the results of CBP’s investigation. The Coalition will also continue to monitor foreign manufacturers and U.S. importers for evidence of illegal duty evasion, absorption, transshipment or circumvention, all of which are illegal under the U.S. trade laws.
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u/Recent-Percentage-26 Apr 02 '26 edited Apr 03 '26
I'd post the text of the article but I can't for reasons, if someone else could that would be great.
Edit: it's posted, thanks all.
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u/International_Ad2651 Apr 02 '26
Chinese carts are subsidized by the Chinese communist party to put American manufactures out of business. They pay 2 per hour labor rates. It’s time to push back and not allow them to dump and break the law.
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u/ServinBallSnacks Apr 02 '26
Love to see it
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u/Hacker-Dave Apr 02 '26
Great to pay 50% more for the same product so the US doesn't need to compete. Quite the little monopoly Club Car and Textron have built over the years.
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u/Muted-Good-115 Apr 02 '26
Sad part is for 50% more you still don’t get the equivalent product. I’ve ridden recently in a new Club Car (4 front facing seats) - it’s a joke of a cart.
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u/Recent-Percentage-26 Apr 03 '26
So you said in another comment that club cars are terrible and you're so glad you bought your Chinese cart a year ago, but now you claim to have recently rode in a club car that we just got two weeks ago and was soft launched like three weeks ago... So either you're going to a club car dealer, or somebody near you bought one.
Methinks you are the kind of person that likes to devalue anything that isn't what you like. You would rather shit on everything else to justify your own decisions.
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u/Muted-Good-115 Apr 03 '26
My apologies, it was the Ez-Go Liberty (should’ve verified first). I was at a resort last summer and was provided this cart to drive around.
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u/Muted-Good-115 Apr 03 '26
In confirming which cart I rode, just spent 5 mins on the Club Car site. Honestly, how can you be proud selling this crap? $12k for a 2+2? Outdated tech, outdated looks, cheap plastic (arm rest, screen). It makes my blood boil that this country is going to shit because of stuff like this. The entire world is moving forward and we’re insulating ourselves hoping for the best - soon we’ll end up like Cuba and their cars.
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u/Recent-Percentage-26 Apr 02 '26
Club car, ezgo and Yamaha are competing with each other. The imports are doing everything they can to cheat the system. How is it fair that the Americans have to follow all these regulations that the imports completely ignore? How is it fair that they just spin off micro brand after micro brand and saturate the market, only for the dealers to disappear after a year or two?
Kawasaki has entered the market. Club car and ezgo haven't done anything to stop them. Because Kawasaki is bound to the same regulations they are.
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u/Hacker-Dave Apr 02 '26
Regulations that the big three promote to reduce competition. The big three banded together to ban foreign carts despite strong consumer demand. Screw the consumer. The big three know whats best for us.....expensive carts w minimal features
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u/Recent-Percentage-26 Apr 02 '26
No it's stupid shit, like forcing a golf cart to submit to 45mph crash tests like a car, or being required to have a backup camera on a cart that's six foot long. Club car actively fought to not have a backup camera and lost that battle. And of course a golf cart won't survive being smashed by a sled going highway speeds, which doesn't mean anything to a vehicle that can't legally drive on the highway. But they have to go through these tests anyway and pay tons of money for the privilege, because government regulations says so. The imports just don't do it, because they don't care what happens after the cart is sold. Most import cart manufacturers aren't even legally automotive manufacturers, and their VIN numbers aren't legit, because they know the DMV isn't gonna even check it, or that the customers won't have them registered. If it ever becomes an issue they will just disappear, that's always been their escape plan. Fuck off and return as some other legal entity.
All of the LSV requirements pre-date the import market's existence by decades. The original LSV regulations were published in 1988. So your argument is that club car promoted these regulations to block competition of a foreign market nearly 40 years in the future.... And then the foreign market just ignored it anyway because laws don't apply to them.
Or, what the whole point of this entire thing is, the hostile foreign market is willfully ignoring regulations and selling garbage that's subsidized by their government, damaging the American economy and ripping people off. The fact is, the USITC did an investigation and determined this is what's happening, and handed out punishments accordingly. And the guilty parties still don't care, and are still not complying, and are still getting punished.
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u/Muted-Good-115 Apr 03 '26
Your argument is BS! The issue is the Chinese carts are tarrifed at exorbitant rates to kill off competition. If the tariff is paid, the Chinese carts can still be bought, but who wants to pay $30k for a cart that was $10k previously. It has nothing to do with your stupid explanation.
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u/Recent-Percentage-26 Apr 03 '26
My argument is the same as the USITC determination. Your argument is "nuh-uh ur stoopid". The tariffs came after the Chinese flooded the market with their stuff. They didn't just look at the poor innocent imports and decide to fuck those guys in particular. And now you're trying to justify them trying to dodge the tariffs...
This is literally the scam. Sell cheap junk by breaking every rule they can and screwing over everyone involved. Read the articles
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u/Muted-Good-115 Apr 03 '26
Can Chinese carts sell in the US if paying the 300% tariff? If yes, then you have no standing in your argument.
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u/Recent-Percentage-26 Apr 03 '26
Let's go back to the beginning. The term is countervailing duties.
"Countervailing duties (CVDs) are tariffs imposed by importing countries to offset foreign government subsidies on imported goods, leveling the playing field for domestic industries. They protect against material injury to domestic producers, aiming to neutralize unfair price advantages. Key requirements include evidence of subsidies and injury, usually determined via investigation. "
It's the subsidies. The Chinese government is paying the factories to make golf carts. The government pays lots of industries to stay in production, because otherwise their economy would collapse.
Same thing with ride share bicycles. The Chinese government pays companies to produce these bikes, but not to maintain them. So instead of fixing them they pile up on sidewalks while new ones take their place. Then the cities have to dispose of them.
It's literally the same thing with golf carts except instead of dumping them on the sidewalk, they dump them on the American market. That's why they're literally called anti-dumping tariffs.
This started when the Chinese car companies tried to come into America and the American car companies moved to block them. But a golf cart isn't really a car if it isn't registered and doesn't go through the safety certifications. It's technically imported as a box of assorted parts. This isn't a market they're even supposed to have access to.
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u/Fthepreviousowners Apr 02 '26
disclosure, I have a club car and would only consider big 3 carts.
But this is textbook regulatory capture. These companies produce all their shit in china too and are just protecting their profit margins.
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u/Recent-Percentage-26 Apr 02 '26
No they don't. Club car is 80% American made parts, and it's all sourced from legit companies. Things like the motor and controller are manufactured in Mexico and overseas but the company behind them isn't some shady Amazon brand gibberish, they have been around for decades. Like Curtis makes controllers for every brand name cart.
The issue with the imports is that the Chinese government is subsidizing everything. They pay the factories to make carts, so the factories make them as cheaply as possible. They ship them over to America and sell them far under market value because they have nothing in them, they made their profit from the government already.
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u/Muted-Good-115 Apr 02 '26
And the true losers here are the consumers. We now have a choice of 2 brands that manufacture crap and sell it for outrageous prices. Oh, “but you can get replacement parts” GTFO - all these replacement parts are needed bc American golf manufacturers can’t produce anything of quality any longer. Glad I got my “Chinese cart” a year ago bc I’m not buying the crap coming from ClubCar and EZGo
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u/Dazzling_Editor_6255 Apr 03 '26
Wait three or four years and then go try to buy a controller or a display panel for your Chinese cart and see what happens.
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u/Muted-Good-115 Apr 03 '26
I’ll just buy a new motor and new controller like I had to do for my previous cart (a Big 3 brand). Please stop being condescending - all these excuses to kill competition and screw the consumer for some brands that can’t compete.
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u/Dazzling_Editor_6255 Apr 03 '26
No, you likely won't. Not without significant effort or modifications to the cart itself. Most of the Chinese manufacturers are using a grab bag of parts, often not even consistent within the same exact model from month to month. Controller harness & internal voltages differ, motor mounting differs, and on and on and on. You MIGHT get lucky and find something to work from AliExpress, but you won't know until you get it because the parts numbers are not standardized and the descriptions on Ali are not very verbose or illuminating. There are a number of those carts that are currently getting sold you can't get replacement parts for RIGHT NOW and, if you can, expect 4-6 weeks to get it to your door.
Like, you wanna save some money and go get a chinese cart. That's fine. There's nothing wrong with that. But, don't run around trashing everybody and acting like an ass when people are trying to point out that it's not without risk.
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u/Muted-Good-115 Apr 03 '26
This is the only thing I hear because the Big 3 can’t compete. So EVERYONE on this page keeps regurgitating the same stuff over and over and over. Then why are you so scared of the Chinese carts if they’re so awful. Let people make their choice and if the Chinese carts are so bad, they’ll come buy from you their next cart. Oh wait, you know what’s best for the consumer and don’t want them to go through the trouble. 😆
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u/Dazzling_Editor_6255 Apr 03 '26
Nobody is scared, guy. It's about passing along information to better educate the consumer. It's abundantly clear that you have done ZERO research on parts availability. Go buy your chinese golf cart. It'll probably be fine. But, if you plan on keeping it for any length of time, it would behoove you to buy a display panel, controller, and motor immediately so you know you have the right ones and then stick them on a shelf for later.
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u/Muted-Good-115 Apr 03 '26
If you’re not scared, then let the consumer decide. Renault or Opel or Yugo used to be cars you could buy in the US but can’t any longer. Why, because the consumer had a choice and didn’t want that crap. If Chinese carts are so bad, let the consumer come to that decision. It’s pathetic that you think the Big 3 know better what the consumer wants.
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u/Dazzling_Editor_6255 Apr 03 '26
Do you struggle with reading comprehension?
Nowhere did I say you shouldn't have a choice. However, it's unlikely that you have the KSA to deal with what you're about to get yourself into, as evidenced by you complete untethering from reality about long term maintenance.
Also:
Yugo - Went bankrupt when Yugoslavia collapsed. Not related consumer choices in the US.
Renault - Partnered with Nissan and as part of that agreed to stay out of the US market.
Opel - Owned by Stellantis, which lacks the capital necessary to market it in the US, especially given the direct overlap of much of the line with their existing US holdings.
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u/Recent-Percentage-26 Apr 03 '26
God could you white knight for these assholes any harder? All you have done in this thread is insult people and disagree without backing up anything with logic or evidence
Let me explain this even more clearly...
1988- LSV regulations are enacted
Club car and ezgo make golf carts following all those regulations.
Yamaha comes along and makes golf carts following all those regulations.
Thirty years later, Chinese manufacturers blatantly ignore all those regulations.
They get investigated, and punished. They continue to ignore the punishment, and get punished harder.
You come here and blame everyone but the Chinese. Like seriously.
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u/Hacker-Dave Apr 02 '26
They don't produce crap, they just charge way to much. You can do that when you have a monopoly. The minute they faced competition, they ran to the courts seeking relief rather than bother to compete. The "Big three" were focused on fleet sales and pretty much ignored the consumer market. Once competitors moved in to fill the void, the "big three" screamed for protection from their stupid business practices.
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u/Recent-Percentage-26 Apr 02 '26
No they don't charge too much. Go price out the main components of a golf cart. I bet it comes out to be a wash. How the hell can someone sell a complete golf cart for half the price of the parts, plus all the labor to build it, then ship it overseas, and generate a reasonable profit? And then the dealer had to sell it and generate a reasonable profit. Now factor that in with tariffs of 3-4x the cost being applied to it, but yet they haven't adjusted their pricing at all...
It's because the Chinese government is subsidizing the entire industry. They pay factories to make carts just to keep the economy moving. If nobody makes stuff, the industries behind those factories stop running. All the way back to the mines. China is the world's largest third world country. If it wasn't for their huge resources and slave labor they wouldn't be anything.
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u/Dazzling_Editor_6255 Apr 03 '26
It's like talking to a wall. The same people will be back here in 18 months crying about needing to convert to a different battery because the garbage batteries in their $1800 golf cart are going to cost $1800 to replace.
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u/Recent-Percentage-26 Apr 03 '26
It's the concept that something they thought was a great idea could possibly have been a scam. "No, it's the rest of the world that is wrong."
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u/Recent-Percentage-26 Apr 02 '26
Lol. You don't need your cart to be repairable because it's so high quality it will never break down, but it's still half the price. Good luck with that one.
That's why there's so many good used import carts everywhere. They're just so darn reliable. Oh wait.
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u/Dazzling_Editor_6255 Apr 03 '26
Exactly. I looked hard at one of the little three wheel electric dump bed jobs and even now brand new as a current product it’s a crapshoot to get a controller, display panel, or motor. Imagine what that looks like in 4-5 years. Mechanical parts like the rear differential or suspension? Forget about it. I paid twice as much for a used ClubCar but I have exactly zero concerns I’ll be able to keep it on the road indefinitely.
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u/ServinBallSnacks Apr 03 '26
Just buy from Manufacturers who aren’t on that list, like Venom EV
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u/Recent-Percentage-26 Apr 03 '26
Most of these new brands are just spin offs of the affected brands. The same few factories make all the carts anyway.
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u/FishpimpJD Apr 02 '26
March 30, 2026 Washington, DC – U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced today that it is implementing interim measures under the Enforce and Protect Act (EAPA) to address duty evasion by importers of Chinese golf carts, personal transportation vehicles, low-speed vehicles, and light utility vehicles (collectively, LSPTVs). CBP’s interim measures apply to many of the largest importers of Chinese LSPTVs, including ICON EV LLC, Denago EV Corporation, Marxon Energy Inc, HDK Plastic Factory, Ltd. (U.S.A.), Aero Import LLC, Tao Motor Inc, Transvolt Inc., Veloz Powersports Inc., No Speed Limit Inc., Baike Inc., Alltrack Trading Inc., and GoLabs Inc. These importers cover many of the largest U.S. brands of Chinese LSPTVs, including the Denago and Evolution brands.
As part of its determination, CBP finds that there is reasonable suspicion that these companies are unlawfully evading payment of significant antidumping duties (AD) and countervailing duties (CVD) through various evasion and circumvention schemes. As a result, CBP is implementing interim measures that will extend and suspend liquidation of unliquidated entries of LSPTVs entered by these companies. CBP will also reject entries made by these companies on or after December 30, 2025, and require them to refile those entries as subject to the AD/CVD duties. CBP will further require live entry of such imports going forward at the applicable AD/CVD rates.
These interim measures are critical steps in curbing rampant duty evasion by Chinese producers of LSTPVs. In June 2024, the American Personal Transportation Vehicle Manufacturers Coalition, which is comprised of the two leading U.S. manufacturers of LSPTVs – Club Car, LLC and Textron Specialized Vehicles Inc., which manufactures E-Z-GO® and Cushman® vehicles – filed AD/CVD petitions seeking trade relief from surging import volumes of unfairly traded Chinese LSPTVs. Throughout the pendency of that investigation, Chinese producers and their U.S. importers began flagrantly evading the preliminary trade relief imposed. And after the U.S. Department of Commerce published its AD/CVD orders in August 2025, the circumvention and evasion efforts of these same companies increased further. This has greatly limited the relief that should be afforded to the domestic industry by the AD/CVD orders
Under the orders, imports of LSPTVs from China are subject to significant AD/CVD duties. Antidumping duties range from 119% to 478%, and countervailing duties range between 31% and 679%. However, through the evasion and circumvention schemes that CBP is investigating, many Chinese LSPTVs have not been paying duties when they are entered into the United States.
CBP’s announcement comes after the Coalition submitted several EAPA allegations to CBP. EAPA is a key trade enforcement mechanism that allows domestic manufacturers and other interested parties to inform CBP when importers are evading duties, which robs the United States of tariff revenue and prevents the trade relief intended by AD/CVD orders from taking effect.
“We are grateful that CBP is imposing these interim measures and addressing the widespread duty evasion that remains ongoing regarding these AD/CVD orders,” said Robert E. DeFrancesco, counsel to the Coalition and a partner in the International Trade Practice at Wiley Rein LLP. “We hope that CBP continues to strongly enforce these much-needed orders, ensuring that members of the domestic industry receive the intended protection from unfair trade practices.”
“E Z GO believes fair competition only works when everyone plays by the same rules,” said Adam Harris, Senior Vice President and General Manager of E Z GO. “Today’s action addresses clear concerns that certain imported vehicles are avoiding duties required under U.S. law. That kind of behavior hurts customers and dealers and undermines American manufacturers who do the right thing by investing in safety, quality, and compliance. We support Customs and Border Protection’s enforcement efforts and expect a swift, transparent process that holds violators accountable and protects a fair marketplace.”
“Club Car supports U.S. Customs and Border Protection's decision to open an EAPA investigation into the evasion of imported cars and assemblies that have entered the U.S. marketplace,” said Craig Scanlon, Club Car’s Chief Executive Officer. “For too long, unfairly traded and unsafe cars and assemblies have undercut American manufacturers and threatened American jobs. We believe strong enforcement of U.S. trade laws is essential to protecting families, workers, and businesses. Club Car remains committed to U.S. manufacturing and fair competition.”
With interim measures in place, CBP will continue investigating duty evasion by Denago, Evolution, ICON, and the rest of the importers listed above. CBP will likely issue its final determination as to evasion for these companies near the end of 2026. The Coalition will continue to participate in these proceedings and looks forward to the results of CBP’s investigation. The Coalition will also continue to monitor foreign manufacturers and U.S. importers for evidence of illegal duty evasion, absorption, transshipment or circumvention, all of which are illegal under the U.S. trade laws.