World News
Canada's 27.6 billion dollar counter-tariffs take effect on Monday
By Staff Writer | 6 September 2026
From 8 September Canada applies counter-tariffs of 15, 25 and 50 per cent to American goods, matching the rate on each product to the American rate. Steel and aluminium move from 25 to 50 per cent, and a 7.5 billion dollar support package runs alongside.
Canada's counter-tariffs on American goods take effect on Monday 8 September, and the list of what they cover has been published. The Department of Finance Canada has confirmed rates of 15, 25 and 50 per cent on products drawn from those targeted by American Section 338 and Section 232 tariffs, with the rate on each product matching the corresponding American rate. The measures cover 27.6 billion Canadian dollars of imports, about 19.9 billion United States dollars, and reach more than 700 product lines.
The sectors named are steel, dairy, appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper, and electronics. Steel and aluminium products that previously carried a counter-tariff of 25 per cent move to 50 per cent, and furniture, clothing and apparel join them in that band. The 25 per cent band takes in appliances, dairy products such as cheese, and certain steel and aluminium derivative products. Counter-tariffs already in force, including those on vehicles, remain in place, and the tariff remission framework stays open for requests for exceptional relief.
How the dispute reached this point
The measures answer an American decision to impose a 50 per cent tariff on 27.6 billion dollars of Canadian goods with effect from 22 August. Ottawa's account is that negotiations were suspended after Washington proposed new terms, and that the counter-tariffs are matched to the American action rather than pitched above it.
When the United States asked too much and offered too little, we chose to stand up for Canadians. Our dollar-for-dollar, rate for rate counter-tariffs as well as a multi-billion dollar support package will protect workers, farmers, families, and businesses as we build a stronger, more resilient, and more diversified Canadian economy.
The Honourable Francois-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Finance and National Revenue of Canada
The support package
Running alongside the tariffs is a package of 7.5 billion Canadian dollars, which the department says builds on nearly 25 billion already provided. It contains a further 1.5 billion through the Regional Tariff Response Initiative delivered by the regional development agencies, including liquidity support for small and medium sized firms; a 500 million liquidity stream under the Business Development Bank of Canada's Pivot to Grow programme, with the minimum revenue requirement for applicants lowered to 1 million dollars; 2 billion through a new Canada Strong Diversification Fund aimed at shovel ready projects supporting continuing capital maintenance; and 3.5 billion in rapid response support for workers and employers, including extended employment insurance flexibilities and a new Worker Retention and Retraining Programme. New flexibilities have also been added to the Large Enterprise Tariff Loan facility.
What it means for anyone buying steel
A 50 per cent duty on steel and aluminium products crossing into Canada is a cost that lands on the party who agreed to bear it, and most standard forms answer that question long before the duty exists. The clauses that matter are the change in law and change in cost provisions, the price adjustment mechanism if there is one, and whatever the contract says about a variation in taxes and duties.
For contractors and suppliers with Canadian work, the practical questions are immediate. Is the material already ordered and in transit, and where does title pass. Does the contract contain a fluctuation clause that reaches customs duties, or only a labour and materials index. If the duty is a change in law, does the mechanism give an entitlement to time as well as money, and does it require notice within a period that is already running. The support measures are directed at Canadian firms and will not answer any of that for a foreign supplier.
Monday is the date. Anyone who has not read their duty and change in law clauses by then will be reading them afterwards, with a number attached.