Accordingly, the new system maintains the principle of open trade and strengthens engagement with global partners to tackle overcapacity, by

1. limiting tariff-free import volumes to 18.3 million mt a year (a reduction of 47 percent compared to the 2024 steel quotas),
2. doubling the level of out-of-quota duty to 50 percent, compared to the 25 percent under the safeguard, and
3. strengthening the traceability of steel markets by introducing a “Melt and Pour” requirement to prevent circumvention.

The quota volumes of various long steel products can be seen in the table below.

• Merchant Bars and Light Sections    881,735 metric tons
• Reinforcing bars    844,526 metric tons
• Wire Rods    1,569,532 metric tons

The products include HRC, CRC, metallic coated sheet, organic coated sheet, tin mill products, quarto plates, merchant bars and light sections, reinforcing bar, wire rod, angles, sections, railway material, gas pipes, hollow sections and large welded tubes.

The period of investigation of this review is April 1, 2018, to March 31, 2023, and the TRA will investigate whether the measure currently in place has removed or reduced serious injury to the UK steel industry and whether it is likely that serious injury will recur if the measure is not extended. The review will recommend to the Secretary of State for Business and Trade if the safeguard measure should be extended by up to two further years to 2026.