Is a tariff a tax on the consumer who does not buy the product?

No, a tariff is not a tax on consumers who do not buy the imported product—but it is effectively a tax on the consumers who do buy it.Here’s the precise economic breakdown:

What a tariff actually is
A tariff is a tax levied by a government on imports, paid by the importer of record (usually the U.S. company bringing the goods in) at the border.
Who ultimately bears the cost?
Economic studies (using what’s called “tax incidence” or “burden sharing”) show the tariff gets passed on through the supply chain:
- Importer pays the tariff → raises their costs
- Importer charges wholesalers more → wholesalers charge retailers more
- Retailers raise shelf prices → American consumers pay higher prices for that imported good or for domestic substitutes that now face less competition.
Consumers who never buy the product
If you don’t purchase the tariffed item (or a domestic alternative whose price rose because of reduced competition), you pay $0 extra. You are unaffected directly.
Real-world numbers (Trump-era 2018–2019 tariffs as the most studied example)
- Federal Reserve, NBER, and IMF studies found that U.S. consumers and businesses bore over 90% of the cost of the China tariffs.
- For every $1 in tariffs collected, American households paid roughly $0.93–$1.20 in higher prices (the range varies by study and product).
- Example: Washing machines → tariffs caused price increases of ~12% or $86 per unit; total cost to U.S. consumers ~$1.5 billion.
The “it’s a tax on foreigners” claim
Politicians sometimes say “China pays the tariffs.” That’s false. Chinese exporters lowered their prices a little (5–20% of the tariff, depending on the product), but the overwhelming majority was passed on to U.S. buyers.

Bottom line
A tariff is a tax on American purchasers of the affected goods—paid indirectly through higher prices. If you don’t buy the stuff, you’re in the clear. If you do, you’re the one footing the bill. It is the buyer’s decision to buy the product and thus pay the tax.

Buy American-made products. Buy local if you can.

About budbromley

Bud is a retired life sciences executive. Bud's entrepreneurial leadership exceeded three decades. He was the senior business development, marketing and sales executive at four public corporations, each company a supplier of analytical and life sciences instrumentation, software, consumables and service. Prior to those positions, his 19 year career in Hewlett-Packard Company's Analytical Products Group included worldwide sales and marketing responsibility for Bioscience Products, Global Accounts and the International Olympic Committee, as well as international management assignments based in Japan and Latin America. Bud has visited and worked in more than 65 countries and lived and worked in 3 countries.

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