Import Furniture from Vietnam to USA | Tariffs

Vietnam has become one of the largest furniture suppliers to the US market: bedroom and dining case goods, occasional tables, upholstered sofas and chairs, and outdoor furniture in acacia, eucalyptus and rubberwood, alongside imported hardwoods such as American oak, ash and walnut. The main cluster is the Binh Duong area (now part of Ho Chi Minh City) and neighbouring Dong Nai, close to the deep-water port at Cai Mep–Thi Vai, with a second cluster around Quy Nhon on the central coast.

The duty on Vietnamese furniture is decided piece by piece. Upholstered wooden seating, kitchen cabinets and vanities carry the 25% Section 232 tariff and are exempt from the 12.5% Section 301 layer; most other wooden furniture pays the layer instead. China's antidumping order on wooden bedroom furniture does not apply to furniture genuinely made in Vietnam — but cabinets and vanities finished in Vietnam from Chinese components are inside the China orders, and a court confirmed it in 2026. We work through WCA partner agents in Vietnam (AGF has no office there), entries are filed by our licensed customs brokers, and our own Foshan office knows the Chinese component trade that these origin questions turn on.

Last reviewed: October 2026

Shipping Furniture from Vietnam to USA

Furniture is volume cargo: it fills a container long before it reaches the weight limit, so the 40ft High Cube is the standard box. Knock-down design matters more than any freight negotiation — flat-packed tables and case goods can fit far more units per container than assembled pieces. As a planning guide, a 40HC holds roughly 250–300 stacking chairs, and far fewer assembled sofas or dressers; below roughly 13–15 CBM, a shared (LCL) container is usually the better buy. We confirm the load plan from the factory's packing list before booking.

Direct sailings from Cai Mep–Thi Vai reach Los Angeles and Long Beach in about 21–23 days; cargo loaded at Cat Lai and transshipped in Singapore takes about 28–32 days. To the East Coast, plan on about 35 days to New York and about 40 to Savannah. Two dates shape the year: factories close for Tết — 6 February in 2027 — and the weeks before it are the most crowded of the year, and typhoons between June and November can delay sailings from the central and northern ports.

40ft High Cube for most furniture; LCL for trial orders below roughly 13–15 CBM
Direct Cai Mep–Thi Vai to Los Angeles/Long Beach: about 21–23 days on the water
ISPM-15 wood packaging, and moisture control for solid wood in the wet season
Load well before Tết (6 February 2027) — space tightens and factories close

What Drives the Cost

Cubic volume — knock-down versus assembled design
Which duty layer each piece falls under: Section 232 (upholstered wooden seating, cabinets, vanities) or the 12.5% Section 301 layer (most other furniture)
Where the components come from — Chinese parts can bring China AD/CVD into the landed cost
Routing: a direct Cai Mep sailing or a Cat Lai transshipment, West Coast or East Coast
Season — the pre-Tết rush and the Q3 retail peak
Delivery: port-adjacent warehouse, distribution center or inland door

HS Codes and Duty Notes

Classification guidance only — duty rates change and depend on your exact product. Our licensed customs brokers verify every code before you commit to an order.

HS Code	Products	Notes
9401.61	Upholstered seats with wooden frames — sofas, sectionals, upholstered dining chairs	Inside the Section 232 action on upholstered wooden furniture (25%, with an increase scheduled for 1 January 2027) and therefore exempt from the 12.5% Section 301 layer — verify the 10-digit line.
9403.40 / 9403.60	Kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities of wood	Section 232 at 25%. If any components are Chinese, the China AD/CVD orders on wooden cabinets and vanities can apply as well — the most expensive mistake in this category.
9403.50 / 9403.60	Wooden bedroom, dining and occasional furniture (case goods)	Mostly duty-free at the normal rate, with the 12.5% Section 301 layer on top. China's wooden bedroom furniture AD order does not reach furniture genuinely made in Vietnam.
9401.69 / 9401.79 / 9403.20	Non-upholstered wooden seating; metal-frame indoor and outdoor seating and tables	Outside the upholstered-furniture Section 232 action, so the 12.5% layer usually applies; steel or aluminum content can raise Section 232 metals questions on some lines.
4412	Hardwood and decorative plywood — not furniture	New AD/CVD orders on Vietnamese hardwood plywood (2026), with combined deposit rates of roughly 130% for most exporters. Panels and parts shipped unassembled need a scope check.

Regulations and Compliance

Section 232 and the 12.5% Section 301 layer

Since 14 October 2025, upholstered seating with wooden frames, kitchen cabinets and vanities have carried a 25% Section 232 tariff from every origin; an increase originally set for 1 January 2026 was postponed to 1 January 2027. Vietnam has no negotiated cap of the kind the EU and Japan (15% all-in) and the UK (10%) have. Goods under Section 232 are exempt from the 12.5% Section 301 layer that has applied to most Vietnamese goods since 24 July 2026, so other wooden furniture pays the layer on top of its normal duty instead. A Vietnam-only Section 301 investigation into intellectual-property practices, a separate excess-capacity investigation and the US–Vietnam trade deal are still open, so rates are verified at quoting.

Cabinets and vanities with Chinese components

The US antidumping and countervailing duty orders on wooden cabinets and vanities from China cover components as well as finished goods. In 2024 Commerce ruled that cabinets further processed in Vietnam from Chinese components remain inside the China orders, with certification requirements for importers; the Court of International Trade sustained that ruling in April 2026. CBP had already found evasion through Vietnam in EAPA case 7603. Before ordering Vietnamese cabinets or vanities, get documentary proof of where the doors, boxes, frames and panels were made — not just where they were assembled.

Hardwood plywood AD/CVD (2026)

Commerce issued final antidumping and countervailing duty determinations on hardwood and decorative plywood from Vietnam in July 2026 and the ITC found injury in August, with combined cash deposits of roughly 130% for most Vietnamese exporters and more for some. Plywood sheets are squarely in scope. Finished furniture is a different product, but panels and furniture parts shipped unassembled can raise scope questions, so they are checked before the order.

TSCA Title VI and the Lacey Act

Plywood, MDF and particleboard in furniture must be certified to EPA formaldehyde emission standards, labeled, and covered by an import certification at entry. Wooden furniture also needs a Lacey Act declaration of genus, species and country of harvest — and Vietnamese furniture often mixes US hardwood, local rubberwood or acacia and imported panels, so the declaration may list several countries. Your factory must be able to document all of them.

Flammability and the STURDY tip-over rule

Upholstered furniture must meet the federal flammability standard (16 CFR 1640). Dressers, chests and other clothing storage units must meet the STURDY tip-over standard (16 CFR 1261), with testing, warning labels and a certificate of conformity. Get the test reports from the factory before production, not after the container lands.

Country of origin and transshipment

Origin is the country of last substantial transformation — where the furniture was actually made, not where it was packed. Chinese components can still carry China's AD/CVD orders, as the cabinet ruling shows. Since the IEEPA transshipment tariff ended in February 2026, CBP polices origin through EAPA investigations, AD/CVD scope rulings and penalties under 19 USC 1592 for false declarations. A Vietnamese certificate of origin (Form B, issued by the Ministry of Industry and Trade since 5 May 2025) is useful evidence but does not bind CBP. AGF will not ship cargo whose origin documents we cannot stand behind.

Door-to-Door Import Service

We start with the product list, materials and where each component comes from: that settles which duty layer applies and whether any China AD/CVD exposure exists, before you pay a deposit. Our WCA partner agent in Vietnam collects from the factory — in the Binh Duong area, Dong Nai, the central coast or the north — handles export customs and the Form B certificate where your buyer wants one, and can supervise and photograph loading on request.

On a direct Cai Mep sailing, plan on roughly 4–5 weeks door to door to Southern California; East Coast and inland destinations take longer, and each booking's transit is confirmed when it is made. The entry is filed by our licensed customs brokers, and we deliver to your warehouse, stores or a partner warehouse near the ports. Quotes are door to door, with exclusions listed up front.

Ocean Freight Customs Warehousing Ground Transport Drayage

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the tariff on furniture from Vietnam?

It depends on the piece. Upholstered wooden seating, kitchen cabinets and vanities pay the 25% Section 232 tariff and are exempt from the 12.5% Section 301 layer. Most other wooden furniture is duty-free at the normal rate but pays the 12.5% layer, in place since 24 July 2026. Cabinets with Chinese components can also fall under the China antidumping and countervailing duty orders. Our licensed customs brokers confirm the total for your exact HS codes before you order.

How long does it take to ship furniture from Vietnam to the USA?

About 21–23 days on the water from Cai Mep–Thi Vai to Los Angeles or Long Beach on a direct sailing, or about 28–32 days via Cat Lai and Singapore. Plan on roughly 4–5 weeks door to door to Southern California. The East Coast takes longer — about 35 days on the water to New York and about 40 to Savannah.

Is furniture made in Vietnam with Chinese parts considered Vietnamese?

Not automatically. Origin is where the furniture was last substantially transformed, so a sofa built in Vietnam from Chinese fabric and hardware is normally Vietnamese, while a Chinese table repacked in Vietnam is not. Cabinets and vanities are the special case: the China AD/CVD orders cover components, and cabinets finished in Vietnam from Chinese parts remain inside them, as the Court of International Trade confirmed in April 2026.

How much does it cost to ship a container of furniture from Vietnam?

Total landed cost is ocean freight, which moves with the season, plus duties, which depend on the piece, plus drayage and delivery. Because the Section 232 tariff and the 12.5% layer apply to the value of the goods, duties usually outweigh freight on furniture. We quote door to door with the standard charges built in and list the exclusions — duties and taxes, and event-driven charges such as exams, demurrage and storage — up front.

Furniture is just one example. AGF ships whatever your business moves — on this lane and beyond. If your commodity isn't covered by one of our guides, tell us what you ship and we'll build the logistics around it.