President-elect Donald Trump announced a plan on Tuesday to create a new External Revenue Service (ERS) to collect revenue from foreign sources, making countries benefiting from trade with the U.S. pay their “fair share.”

“For far too long, we have relied on taxing our Great People using the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Through soft and pathetically weak Trade agreements, the American Economy has delivered growth and prosperity to the World, while taxing ourselves,” said President Trump on Truth Social.

“It is time for that to change. I am today announcing that I will create the EXTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE to collect our Tariffs, Duties, and all Revenue that come from Foreign sources. We will begin charging those that make money off of us with Trade, and they will start paying, FINALLY, their fair share. January 20, 2025, will be the birth date of the External Revenue Service,” he added.

Trump suggested that the current tax system relies too much on taxing the American people and believes that the U.S. should be taxing other countries that prosper in large part as a result of trade with America.

He promised that he would establish the new government agency on day one of his presidency, when he takes office on Jan. 20.

Although the president-elect’s statement appeared critical of the IRS, it did not suggest that he has any plans to abolish or even reduce the size of the much-hated agency.

Though Trump promised that the IRS will focus on taxing foreign entities, the decision to establish a new agency could leave Americans to contend with two potentially burdensome revenue services, rather than just one.

The creation of a new government agency appears to be at cross purposes with Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed by Elon Musk.

That non-government department is intended to help Trump cut down on government waste by reducing excess spending and decreasing the size of federal agencies rather than developing new ones.

The move does, however, seem in line with Trump’s emerging strategy of using tariffs as a key tool in his foreign policy arsenal, threatening to impose significant tariffs on nations such as Russia, China, Mexico, and Canada if they act against U.S. interests.