Intel, Micron, Qualcomm, TI join call for chip tariff exemptions

Business news | May 26, 2025

By Peter Clarke

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US chip giants, Intel, Micron, Qualcomm and Texas Instruments have each submitted comments to the US Department of Commerce seeking to lighten the burden of expected US semiconductor import tariffs or obtain exemptions.

Their submissions come are a response under the terms of a “Section 232” investigation into semiconductor imports. They come as the world’s leading foundry TSMC made its own appeal for the administration of President Trump to think again or provide it with an exemption on import tariffs.

TSMC gets tough, warns US over chip import tariffs

President Trump has repeatedly said that he will impose a significant tariffs on imported chips and related semiconductor materials of 25 percent or more.

All of the US chip companies’ letters professed support for President Trump’s reshoring policy for chip making but highlight the complexity of the semiconductor supply chain. Each letter in its own way seeks to explain how poorly architected tariffs could harm US interests rather than achieve the desired outcome.

The four companies cover the range of logic, memory, analog and power chips and chip design creating the impression of a co-ordinated effort to reduce the impact of the expected tariff regime or possibly make President Trump do a U-turn.

Comments

In its letter – declared to be a public version – Micron Technology Inc. (Boise, Idaho) emphasized its role as the only US maker at scale of memory components and its plans to invest US$140 billion in the US over the next 20 years. It pointed out semiconductor manufacturing equipment (SME) has to be imported and any applied tariff would put Micron at a disadvantage versus its competitors.

“The Administration should consider establishing a temporary tariff exemption on critical inputs for U.S. semiconductor fabs, including SME, construction materials, replacement parts, and raw materials such as lithography photoresist, and chemicals,” Micron said.

Intel also played its card as a domestic leading-edge chipmaker. Intel is one of only three leading-edge digital chip makers alongside TSMC and Samsung. Intel also emphasized planned investments in domestic chip making with the implied threat that these may not go ahead if the market is harmed by chip tariffs.

Intel commented: “Government policies should support, not hinder, these investments. Intel’s return to leadership in process technology is an important achievement, but imposing overly broad tariffs could disrupt this progress, counteracting the ability to sustain this leadership into the future.”

Coming from a fabless chip company, Qualcomm’s arguments were slightly different. It emphasized the importance of Qualcomm as the standard setter in 5G and likely in 6G.

It argued that it and its domestic customers rely on imported chips and the complexity of the supply chain would harm domestic demand and thereby hurt Qualcomm and its position as a world leader in RF standards.

Texas Instruments a manufacturer of analog, mixed-signal and power chips said: “TI supports efforts to strengthen end-product and semiconductor manufacturing in the U.S. A critical element of that strategy must be for U.S.-manufactured semiconductors to be globally competitive. To do so, the U.S. government needs to pursue policies that support U.S. semiconductor manufacturing investments and incentivize strong downstream demand for U.S.-origin chips to be used in end- products across all industries and markets.”

The Department of Commerce sought opinions for its tariff investigation from all sectors and closed the consultation on May 7th. As of May 25 a total of 154 letters had been published. Many semiconductor industry bodies have submitted as well as representatives of the authorities from Europe, the People’s Republic of China, Taiwan, Canada, Brazil and Switzerland