On April 15, Canada’s Minister of Finance announced the government’s intention to “provide temporary 6-month relief for goods imported from the U.S. that are used in Canadian manufacturing, processing and food and beverage packaging, and for those used to support public health, health care, public safety, and national security objectives.”
Finance Canada officials have since provided additional information on this new measure. An Order in Council implementing this measure was published on April 16, and the accompanying Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) Customs Notice was published the next day.
These guidance documents state that the government is granting this temporary 6-month remission from the March 4 and March 13 counter tariffs for:
- Goods imported from the U.S. for use, in Canada, in the manufacture or processing of any good or the packaging of a food product or beverage;
- Goods imported from the U.S. by, or on behalf of a series of public health, public safety and national security organizations such as law enforcement, first responders, DND, the Canadian Forces and CSIS; or
- Goods imported from the U.S. for providing health care at hospitals, health/dental clinics or medical/dental/diagnostic labs.
A tariff remission will be granted under the following conditions:
- Goods must be imported before October 15, 2025;
- No other claim for relief of the surtax has been previously granted; and
- The importer makes a claim for remission within two years of the date of importation.
Officials told industry stakeholders that the measure applies to any good imported since the counter tariffs were put in place on March 4 or 13, depending on the goods. Qualifying importers who already imported goods into Canada will need to request a refund from CBSA. Details on how to claim a refund are indicated in the following Customs Notice.
To obtain relief from the surtax at time of import, importers must follow the steps outlined in the Customs Notice. It is important to indicate the appropriate special authorization code in the Special Authority OIC field on the Commercial Accounting Declaration filed with CBSA (25-0466A, 25-0466B, 25-0466C or 25-0466D depending on the case). To seek duties remission for goods that were already imported, importers should again follow the steps outlined in the Customs Notice to submit a correction/adjustment request.
Officials further mentioned that this measure is being implemented as a stopgap measure given the large volume of duties remission requests they have received so far. They are continuing to process these requests, but believe this measure will provide immediate relief to approximately two-thirds of applicants while they address the backlog.
Other information obtained from Finance Canada over the past week includes the following:
- Global Affairs Canada has launched a hotline to offer support to Canadian exporters in understanding CUSMA compliant items.
- Need help with CUSMA compliance? Call GAC’s support line at: 1-833-760-1167.
- Canada does not plan on retaliating further at this time, but says it will remain agile should President Trump implement further tariffs targeting Canada. Officials noted that President Trump has launched Section 232 investigations on semiconductors and pharmaceuticals, which leads them to believe that the U.S. might impose news sectoral tariffs in coming weeks.
- While Prime Minister Carney previously indicated that negotiations towards a renewed Canada-U.S. economic and security relationship would commence shortly after the federal election, officials noted that no formal industry consultation is currently planned ahead of these negotiations.
- The remission framework for auto producers announced earlier this week is intended for the five auto makers that assemble vehicles in Ontario, and does not necessarily apply to other companies who support with assembly in prereferral ways (e.g., VW battery facility). Officials reminded stakeholders that this support is contingent on these companies following through with planned investments in Canada, and that the government will be monitoring production levels to ensure compliance.
To learn more about the Government of Canada’s temporary tariff relief for manufacturers, please contact AEM’s Senior Advisor, Global Public Policy, Alex Russ at aruss@aem.org.
