Trump waives specified Russia sanctions and duties under Graham Act

President Donald Trump’s Oct. 16 executive order waives the application of specified sanctions, restrictions and duties under the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026. The order came two days before the Oct. 18 implementation date reported by The Associated Press. The act remains law; Trump used its waiver authority rather than repealing it.

The law, Public Law 119-111, was enacted Sept. 18. Section 115 authorizes the president to waive the application of sanctions provisions, restrictions and duties after submitting a written national-interest certification to Congress and a report explaining its basis. The order says Trump submitted both and describes the waiver as in the national interest of the United States.

Which measures the order waives

The order waives duties under Sections 112 and 113, as well as duties provided for in the order. It separately waives sanctions provisions and restrictions under Sections 102(a), 102(d) and 102(e), Sections 103 through 111, and Section 117. It does not waive every subsection of Section 102.

The order describes a 500% ad valorem duty increase on goods from Russia, subject to statutory exceptions. It also describes a 100% increase on goods from the five largest importers of Russian-origin crude oil and natural gas if a country knowingly makes new purchases on or after Oct. 18. A separate 100% increase applies to goods from the top five facilitators of Russian oil-sanctions evasion. Those rates and conditions are stated in the order, and the order waives the application of the specified duties.

The act separately directs that the Section 112 duty increase occur no later than 30 days after enactment. AP identified Oct. 18 as the implementation date for the new measures; Trump issued the order before that date. The order and reporting do not establish that the waived measures took effect before the waiver or document resulting economic effects.

The waiver concerns specified provisions of the new law, not every U.S. measure against Russia. The order says it does not affect specified sanctions and other measures imposed under separate executive orders addressing the Russian government’s harmful foreign activities. Importers of goods covered by the duty provisions, and people who could have been subject to the act’s specified sanctions or restrictions, are among those affected by whether those provisions apply.

The order sets no fixed expiration date. It says the waivers remain in effect until the president or secretary of state determines further action is appropriate, in consultation with the Treasury secretary and the U.S. Trade Representative, as appropriate.

Lawmakers criticize the waiver

On Oct. 17, AP reported criticism from lawmakers in both parties. Republican Sens. Thom Tillis and John Cornyn were among those who criticized the move, as were Democratic lawmakers including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Elizabeth Warren. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged supporters to speak out for the sanctions and said the act could still help if it were made to work.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the administration wanted up to 60 days to study the economic effects of imposing the measures, citing existing tariffs and high energy prices, AP reported. That reported review period is separate from the order’s duration: it does not set a 60-day expiration for the waivers. AP also reported that Congress was in recess until after the Nov. 3, 2026, election.