The European Parliament has approved the regulations implementing the trade agreement reached between the European Union and the United States in the summer of 2025. The Strasbourg vote represents a decisive step towards making the tariff measures agreed between Brussels and Washington operational, in a context that continues to be characterized by trade tensions and the need to find a balance in transatlantic economic relations. The agreement was reached on 27 July 2025 in Turnberry, Scotland, during the meeting between US President Donald Trump and the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen. Now the European Parliament has given the green light to the two legislative acts necessary to transform that agreement into concrete rules.
Green light for regulations with a large majority
The main regulation was approved with 440 votes in favour, 151 against and 50 abstentions. The text provides for the elimination of European duties on industrial goods coming from the United States and introduces preferential access to the community market for various American agricultural and fisheries products. The second regulation, approved with 444 votes in favour, 152 against and 54 abstentions, concerns the extension of the exemption from duties on imports of lobster from the United States. The measure is also extended to derived and processed products. Both provisions were modified during negotiations between the Parliament and the Council of the European Union, with the introduction of a series of guarantees requested by MEPs to protect European industry from any unilateral decisions by Washington.
What does the agreement between Brussels and Washington provide?
The commercial agreement is based on a principle of mutual opening of the markets. On the one hand, the European Union eliminates tariffs on US industrial goods, on the other, the United States maintains a horizontal tariff of 15% for European products. The approval of the regulations also comes after recent statements by President Trump, who in recent weeks had threatened the introduction of higher tariffs in the event of failure to ratify the agreement by 4 July.
One of the most significant elements introduced by the European Parliament is the so-called “sunset clause”, a temporary clause that limits the duration of the legislation. The provisions will enter into force after publication in the Official Journal of the European Union, but will automatically cease to have effect on 31 December 2029. By 30 June of the same year, the European Commission will have to present a detailed assessment of the impact of the new rules on European industry, agriculture and small and medium-sized enterprises. Only after this verification will it be possible to decide whether or not to extend the agreement.
Protections for steel and aluminium
Among the main concerns that emerged during the parliamentary debate was that relating to products derived from steel and aluminium. In August 2025 the United States had in fact expanded the list of goods subject to duties, adding 407 new product categories. For this reason, the European Parliament obtained the inclusion of a clause that allows the Commission to suspend tariff concessions granted to the United States if, by 31 December 2026, Washington continues to apply tariffs exceeding 15% on steel and aluminum derivatives imported from the European Union. The Commission will also have to present a specific report on the tariff treatment reserved for these products by 1 December 2026.
The safeguard mechanism for businesses and agriculture
Another central element of the agreement is the safeguard mechanism agreed between Parliament and the Council. The measure will allow the European Union to intervene if the tariff concessions granted to the United States cause an increase in imports that could damage European industry or the agricultural sector. In these cases the Commission will be able to launch autonomous investigations or intervene at the request of the Member States or the European Parliament itself. Periodic checks on the progress of trade are also envisaged. Brussels will in fact have to publish a quarterly report on the volumes and values of US exports affected by the new rules.
