Canada Releases Final List of Retaliatory Tariffs

The list is organized into three different tables.

1. Table 1 covers steel imports that will be subject to 25% tariffs.
2. Table 2 covers aluminum imports that will be subject to 10% tariffs.
3. Table 3 covers “other” products subject to 10% tariffs.

The retaliatory tariffs will not apply to US goods that are in transit to Canada on July 1, 2018. In addition, these retaliatory duties will apply to goods released from a Customs Bonded Warehouse or Sufferance Warehouse on or after July 1, 2018, regardless of the date of importation.

The Government of Canada also issued an accompanying Customs Notice 18-08 and Memorandum D16-1-1 that provide details on this recent action.

The new tariffs will only apply to goods that originate in the US as determined in accordance with the Determination of Country of Origin for the Purposes of Marking Goods (NAFTA Countries) Regulations. Please note that these rules were recently amended, especially with regard to steel products. The current regulation can be found here.

Of special importance for many companies is that the announcement clarifies that Canada’s Duties Relief and Duty Drawback Programs continue to be available to importers for duties, including new tariffs, paid or owed by Canadian businesses that meet the requirements of the programs. Finally, the Customs Notice also provides an example calculation for the new tariffs.

These new tariffs will apply to both commercial and personal importations of goods.

Canada’s retaliatory tariffs against the US are valued at C$16.6 billion in imports of steel, aluminum, and other products. These tariffs are in response to the United States’ imposition of tariffs on steel and aluminum products under Section 232 and will remain in place until the US eliminates Section 232 tariffs against Canadian steel and aluminum products.

These products were taken from an initial list published in May that contained four- or six-digit HTSUS numbers. The final list contains eight-digit HTSUS numbers and removes certain products (e.g., HTSUS 7301.10, 7302.40 and 7304.11) and therefore should be reviewed by all interested parties.

Canada joins the list of four countries that have announced effective dates for retaliatory tariffs on imports from the United States. For ease of reference, we provide below a summary of the retaliatory duties, effective dates and links to relevant product lists.