May 12, 2025 – The United States and China have agreed to roll back some of the steep tariffs they placed on each other’s goods, giving both sides 90 days to cool tensions and continue negotiations. Under the deal, U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports will drop from 145% to 30%, while China will cut its own tariffs on American goods from 125% to 10%. The change takes effect Wednesday and follows a weekend of intense talks in Geneva between trade officials from both countries. President Donald Trump’s 20% fentanyl-related tariff will stay in place, but most of the broader trade war measures will be temporarily relaxed. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said both sides wanted to get back to doing business.
May 6, 2025 – The CBSA has received numerous inquiries on the Importer Records program in CARM. As of October 21, 2024, importers who are maintaining records outside of Canada or not at their place of business in Canada will not be issued an importer account (RM) unless the BSF900: Agreement to maintain records elsewhere than the place of business in Canada has been completed and submitted in the CARM portal. (For more details, refer to Memorandum D17-1-21: Maintenance of Records in Canada by Importers.) Note that records must be kept in Canada, the USA or Mexico. Canaan Transport can assist customers who would like to store their records in Canada for this express purpose. Please contact us for more details.
April 17, 2025 – On April 16th, the Canadian Government announced preliminary information about the programs it is initiating to support businesses affected by the surtaxes imposed on US goods. On April 17th, 2025, additional details about the qualifications and application process for one of its Remission Orders were made available. Please see this link https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/publications/cn-ad/cn25-19-eng.html
April 3, 2025 – The following is a list of the tariffs in place for imports from USA into Canada
CA 25% tariff on US goods
On March 4th, 2025, after a 30-day pause, the Canadian Government implemented the United States Surtax Order(2025-1), resulting in a 25% tariff on US goods imported into Canada. These trade policies are in response to the US administration placing a 25% tariff on goods originating in Canada being imported into the US.
CA 25% tariff on US aluminum and steel
On March 13th, 2025, the Canadian Government implemented the United States Surtax Order (Steel and Aluminum 2025), resulting in a 25% tariff on certain products of US origin imported into Canada. This trade action was in response to the US administration placing a 25% tariff on goods originating in Canada with steel and aluminum content being imported into the US. The 25% reciprocal tariffs are on $12.6 billion of steel products, $3 billion on aluminum, and $14.2 billion on additional products (such as computers and sports equipment), totaling $29.8 billion.
25% TARIFF ON AMERICAN CAR IMPORTS NOT IN PLACE
More information to come in the coming days
Next round of retaliatory tariffs. NOT IN PLACE
April 1, 2025 – “Stricter Customs regulations” from the EU’s ICS2 will see “stricter enforcement,” Hapag-Lloyd has warned, and European forwarders “have encountered significant challenges.” From today, April 1, the EU is ramping up its Import Control System 2 (ICS2) – an advance cargo information system designed to improve supply chain security – on requirements for all non-EU imports. It will become mandatory for all house-level filers (freight forwarders, importers, ground handling agents, etc.) to connect to ICS2 and submit entry summary declarations (ENS), filings for shipments they handle. The pre-arrival Customs process will also now apply to all transport modes, including road and rail, in addition to the existing air, maritime and inland waterway requirements.
March 31, 2025 – With a range of tariffs to be implemented on Wednesday by the U.S., shippers will need to make some hard choices – and likely pay some “hard dollars.” The tariffs are set to be paid by U.S. importers, those established as an ‘importer of record’ and able to open a payment account with U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP). Although our Canadian customer are not directly having to pay these tariffs, the impact will still be felt by the US Customer. The ramifications of the new trade barriers will only be discovered once shippers have made some choices, said James Hookham, director of Global Shippers Forum. “The real impact on trade and economies will come from the way that U.S. importers respond to this additional cost. Do they ‘pay and absorb’, and take a hit on profits, and their share price? “Do they ‘pay and inflate’ – pass the cost on in higher retail prices and probably lose market share to home-produced products? “Or do non-U.S. manufacturers look to reduce their export price and effectively pay the tariff themselves, but at least maintain their current prices in the U.S. market? We call that ‘pay and squeeze’.” There are other options – but not quick ones, and the benefits could change overnight depending on Canadian retaliatory tariffs.
March 27, 2025 – When the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) Assessment and Revenue Management (CARM) system was launched externally on October 21, 2024, a 180-day transition period was introduced to grant commercial importers additional time to post their financial security electronically while benefitting from the Release Prior to Payment (RPP) Program. In response to feedback received from stakeholders, the CBSA will grant a 30-day extension to the transition period. Importers will now have until 3:00 am EDT on May 20, 2025, to post their financial security in the CARM system. Importers who do not post financial security in CARM by May 20 will no longer be able to benefit from having their goods released electronically at the border prior to making payment of the duties and taxes. Without RPP, importers will have to pay all duties and taxes before goods can be released.
March 24, 2025 – Quebec’s Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility announced on March 20 dates of the thaw period for zones 1 and 2. For those two areas of central and southern Quebec, load restrictions due to thaw will apply from Monday, March 24 to Friday, May 23. The target dates for Zone 3 have been pushed back. The thaw period is now expected to run from March 31 to May 30.
March 10, 2025 – The containership SM Portland, operated by SM Line, lost 115 containers due to severe weather while sailing through the Bering Sea on March 4. Strong winds caused the 4,228-TEU vessel to roll heavily, leading to the loss, collapse, and damage of its cargo. The ship is now scheduled to arrive in Vancouver on March 10, where it will undergo inspection before offloading its cargo. Canaan Transport will be advising any affected customers to confirm if their goods were impacted.
March 6, 2025 – The White House announced Thursday afternoon that it will suspend tariffs on all imports that are compliant with the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement until April 2. The pause, which was extended to imports from Mexico that adhered to the agreement earlier Thursday, will now also cover goods from Canada that meet the trade deal’s requirements. The move builds on Wednesday’s exemption for car imports from either country. Roughly half of Mexico imports to the U.S. are CUSMA compliant, while nearly 40% of those from Canada are, CNBC reported, citing a White House official. The U.S. is preparing to enact a universal reciprocal tariff policy on April 2, the day the pause ends.