Tariffs are back in the US, and this time they’re targeted at drones. According to a statement posted by The White House on Thursday, there will be a 25% tariff on drones smaller than 25kg (55lb) and components for them. This comes as the drone market in the US has already suffered a major blow when the FCC said it would no longer approve new drones from foreign companies for sale, effectively making it so none of the major drone makers (read: DJI) could launch their new products in the country.

The White House positions the tariffs as a way to “address the national security threat posed by imports of drones and their components,” though the statement specifically calls out that the smaller drones being tariffed at 25% “lack certain capabilities that particularly implicate national security.” The tariffs come down much harder on heavier industrial and agricultural models, or drones that have thermal imaging capabilities; those are being taxed at 100%.

This is the latest move from the US government aimed at curtailing the popularity of foreign-made drones. Last year, it made it so companies couldn’t get regulatory approval to sell new drones in the country, but allowed existing models to remain on store shelves. That hasn’t changed, but with the addition of tariffs, it seems certain that those drones will now be more expensive, leaving Americans to pay more for now-outdated models.

The tariffs on drones will take effect 21 days from when the proclamation was signed

The tariffs on drones will take effect 21 days from when the proclamation was signed, while the ones on some components may take a while longer to go into effect. In case it wasn’t clear that the administration was largely targeting drones made in China, the proclamation also contains a carveout on drones and components made in the EU, Japan, Liechtenstein, Republic of Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, and the UK, as long as “substantially all hardware, software, and technology originates from within these countries and the United States.” If they meet that bar, they’ll only be tariffed at 15% (or 10% for the UK).

DJI originally said it wouldn’t launch the Mavic Mini 5 Pro in the US, but it’s currently available at retailers for $759 for the base drone and controller kit. That price could go up substantially with a 25% import tariff (though it doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll cost $950; tariffs apply to a good’s import price, not its MSRP).DJI

This isn’t the current US administration’s first attempt at tariffs. Last year it announced wide-ranging import tariffs on goods from virtually every other country, sparking trade wars, which saw threats of tariffs as high as 25% on goods from Japan, and up to 145% on Chinese imports. While they were in effect, nearly every camera company raised its prices on most or all of their products. While the reciprocal tariffs were deemed illegal by the Supreme Court earlier this year, we’ve yet to see a wholesale softening of those prices.

As for whether these new tariffs will meet the same fate, it’s impossible to say. But if you’re an American considering a drone, it may be worth getting it sooner, rather than later.

About the Author: Mitchell started taking pictures at 10 and hasn’t stopped since. It’s been a wide-ranging adventure, spanning a wide variety of genres and locales, and occasionally dipping into fascinations with video and filmmaking. They honed their technical knowledge doing documentation, programing and QA, writing for The Verge, and just generally messing around on the computer to see what breaks.