A 500% ceiling on duties on all goods imported from Russia — including crude oil, natural gas, LNG, petroleum products, and petrochemicals — anchors the most aggressive US legislative attack yet on Russian energy revenue. The Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 passed the House Sept. 16 by a vote of 262-159, after clearing the Senate 86-11 in August. It now awaits President Donald Trump's signature, and the White House has said the administration supports the legislation and would recommend Trump sign it into law.

The bill targets the revenue stream behind Russia's war in Ukraine: oil and gas exports, the tanker fleet that carries them, and the countries that keep buying. But the operational detail that matters most to crude and LNG markets is discretion. While the measure mandates broad sanctions, it gives Trump wide latitude over implementation — which countries face tariffs, at what rates, and whether sanctions provisions are waived at all.

The waiver mechanism is explicit. The president "may waive the application" of sanctions provisions, restrictions, or duties if he certifies to Congress that doing so is "in the national interest of the United States" and explains the basis for the decision. In practice, the law sets tariff ceilings and designation criteria while leaving the timing, scope, and enforcement to the administration.

Tariff structure

The bill builds its tariff regime in two tiers.

The first targets buyers. Within 30 days of enactment, the president must impose duties of up to 100% on goods imported from countries that fall within specified categories tied to Russian oil and gas purchases or sanctions evasion. Covered countries include those among the five largest importers of Russian-origin crude oil or natural gas by total volume during the 12 months preceding enactment, plus countries that meet separate criteria for facilitating evasion. The administration must reassess the designations every 180 days.

One carve-out applies to gas. A country escapes the gas-related duties if its Russian gas imports accounted for less than 15% of Russia's total exports during the applicable period and it has taken "significant steps" to cut those imports.

The second tier hits Russia directly. The act directs the president to raise duties on all goods imported from Russia — oil, natural gas, LNG, petroleum products, and petrochemicals — to as much as 500%. These duties would stack on top of all other applicable duties, fees, taxes, and charges.

The bill also reaches third-party facilitation. It covers countries whose foreign persons knowingly engage in transactions, activities, or services that "circumvent or assist any third party to circumvent" sanctions, with the administration responsible for determining which countries meet those criteria.

Shadow fleet and LNG projects named

The legislation names names on the maritime side. It targets Russia's so-called shadow fleet and other foreign persons supporting Russian energy production or sanctions evasion — vessel owners, operators, managers, insurers, and other parties engaged in covered activities.

It also identifies specific Russian LNG projects: Yamal LNG and Arctic LNG 1, 2, and 3. Those designations bring the sanctioned-project list beyond crude into the heart of Russia's liquefaction capacity.

Corporate exposure runs to the top. The act could subject leaders, senior executives, directors, and controlling shareholders of covered entities to sanctions.

Iran extension

The bill extends the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996 through 2031, preserving US sanctions authority covering investment in Iran's energy sector.

What to watch

The legislation is named for the late South Carolina senator who championed it. Its practical force, however, will be decided not in the roll-call votes but in the implementation decisions that follow.

Watch three items. First, the 30-day clock from enactment: which countries land on the top-five importer list for Russian crude and gas, and at what duty levels the White House actually sets rates below the 100% ceiling. Second, the 180-day reassessment cycle, which will determine whether buyer designations tighten or loosen as import patterns shift. Third, the waiver mechanism — any certification to Congress that skipping a sanctions provision serves the national interest will signal how much of the bill's 500% headline figure translates into market-moving enforcement rather than negotiating leverage.

For crude, product, and LNG traders, the near-term question is discount behavior: whether designated buyers accelerate the reduction in Russian-origin barrels and cargoes ahead of the first 180-day review, or whether waivers blunt the bill's impact before the first duty takes effect.