It’s Time to Make Permanent the WTO Moratorium on Customs Duties on Electronic Transmissions

by Semiconductor Industry Association

WASHINGTON—March 24, 2026—The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) today released the following statement from SIA President and CEO John Neuffer urging trade negotiators from the United States and around the world to renew and make permanent the World Trade Organization (WTO) Moratorium on Customs Duties on Electronic Transmissions. Global trade negotiators will convene March 26-29 for the WTO’s 14^th Ministerial Conference (MC14) in Yaoundé, Cameroon.

“For more than 25 years, the Moratorium has unleashed transformative growth in global digital trade across a range of sectors, including semiconductors, artificial intelligence, internet-related services, consumer and industrial electronics, digitally enabled sectors like entertainment, and many more. SIA has long urged the WTO to make the Moratorium permanent to provide the semiconductor industry with much-needed stability and predictability.

“SIA appreciates the Administration’s efforts to support the free flow of data, and we look forward to working with policymakers to promote global trade under a permanent Moratorium that preserves the open digital economy necessary to foster innovation and growth in the AI era.”

SIA has signed three multi-association letters attesting to the Moratorium’s wide-ranging benefits. The broad range of signatories to these letters demonstrates that all economies stand to gain from a permanent Moratorium.

• World Semiconductor Council Call for Extension and Permanency of the WTO Moratorium
• Global Statement and Report on WTO Moratorium on Customs Duties on Electronic Transmissions
• WTO MC14: A Turning Point for Multilateralism and Digital Trade

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Media Contact
Dan Rosso
Semiconductor Industry Association
240-305-4738
drosso@semiconductors.org

About SIA
The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) is the voice of the semiconductor industry, one of America’s top export industries and a key driver of America’s economic strength, national security, and global competitiveness. SIA represents 99% of the U.S. semiconductor industry by revenue and nearly two-thirds of non-U.S. chip firms. Through this coalition, SIA seeks to strengthen leadership of semiconductor manufacturing, design, and research by working with Congress, the Administration, and key industry stakeholders around the world to encourage policies that fuel innovation, propel business, and drive international competition. Learn more at www.semiconductors.org.