The Government of Canada has announced retaliatory tariffs of 10 percent on certain steel and aluminum imports from the United States, effective September 16, 2020. These countermeasures will only apply to goods originating from the U.S. and will remain in place until the U.S. eliminates its aluminum tariffs. The U.S. had previously announced on August 6, 2020 the imposition of tariffs of 10 percent on all aluminum products from Canada effective August 16, 2020. The Canadian Department of Finance will accept comments on its proposed retaliatory tariff list until September 6, 2020.

All comment submissions to the government should include, at a minimum, the following information:

  1. Canadian company/industry association name and contact person.
  2. Relevant eight-digit tariff item(s) and description of the goods of particular interest.
  3. Reasons for the expressed support for, or concern with, the proposed countermeasures, including detailed information substantiating any expected beneficial or adverse impact.
  4. Please identify if information provided in the submissions is commercially sensitive.

Comments should be sent to the email address fin.tariff-tarif.fin@canada.ca and include the term “Aluminum countermeasures” in the subject line.

In May 2019, the United States announced a deal with Canada and Mexico to remove U.S. Section 232 tariffs for steel and aluminum imports in exchange for the removal of Mexican and Canadian retaliatory tariffs. The agreement provided a monitoring mechanism to prevent surges in steel and aluminum imports into the U.S. If the U.S. government determined a surge in steel or aluminum imports has occurred, then the U.S. could reimpose Section 232 tariffs. However, any retaliation by Canada or Mexico would then be limited to steel and aluminum products, as to not drag other industries into the trade dispute.

In accordance with that agreement, the table of retaliatory tariffs provided by the Canadian government includes 68 products of steel or aluminum composition. Notable products include bicycles, golf clubs, refrigerators, and washing machines. For the full list of products and HTS codes, please see below:

Tariff Item Description (note 1)
2606.00.00 Aluminum ores and concentrates
2620.40.00 Slag, ash and residues, containing mainly aluminum
2818.20.00 Aluminum oxide
2818.30.00 Aluminum hydroxide
2826.12.00 Fluorides of aluminum
2827.32.00 Other chlorides of aluminum
2833.22.00 Other sulphates of aluminum
3212.90.00 Pigments used in manufactures of paints and dyes
3815.19.00 Reaction initiators, reaction accelerators and catalytic preparations, other
7601.10.00 Unwrought aluminum, not alloyed
7601.20.00 Unwrought aluminum, aluminum alloys
7602.00.00 Aluminum waste and scrap
7603.10.00 Aluminum powders of non-lamellar structure
7603.20.00 Aluminum powders of lamellar structure; aluminum flakes
7604.10.00 Aluminum bars, rods and profiles, not alloyed
7604.21.00 Hollow profiles, of aluminum alloys
7604.29.00 Aluminum bars, rods and profiles, of aluminum alloys, other
7605.11.00 Aluminum wire, not alloyed, of which the maximum cross-sectional dimension exceeds 7 mm
7605.19.00 Aluminum wire, not alloyed, other
7605.21.00 Aluminum wire, of aluminum alloys, of which the maximum cross-sectional dimension exceeds 7 mm
7605.29.00 Aluminum wire, of aluminum alloys, other
7606.11.00 Aluminum plates, sheets and strip, of a thickness exceeding 0.2 mm, rectangular (square), not alloyed
7606.12.00 Aluminum plates, sheets and strip, of a thickness exceeding 0.2 mm, rectangular (square), of aluminum alloys
7606.91.00 Aluminum plates, sheets and strip, of a thickness exceeding 0.2 mm, other, not alloyed
7606.92.00 Aluminum plates, sheets and strip, of a thickness exceeding 0.2 mm, other, of aluminum alloys
7607.11.00 Aluminum foil, not backed, rolled but not further worked
7607.19.00 Aluminum foil, not backed, other
7607.20.00 Aluminum foil, backed
7608.10.00 Aluminum tubes and pipes, not alloyed
7608.20.00 Aluminum tubes and pipes, of aluminum alloys
7609.00.00 Aluminum tube or pipe fittings
7610.10.00 Aluminum doors, windows and their frames and thresholds for doors
7610.90.10 Aluminum structures and parts of structures; aluminum plates, rods, profiles, tubes and the like, prepared for use in structures, other than doors, windows and their frames and thresholds for doors, for use in Canadian manufactures
7610.90.90 Aluminum structures and parts of structures; aluminum plates, rods, profiles, tubes and the like, prepared for use in structures, other than doors, windows and their frames and thresholds for doors, other
7611.00.00 Aluminum reservoirs, tanks, vats and similar containers, for any material (other than compressed or liquefied gas), of a capacity exceeding 300 litres, whether or not lined or heat-insulated, but not fitted with mechanical or thermal equipment
7612.10.00 Aluminum collapsible tubular containers
7612.90.10 Aluminum aerosol containers, excluding three-piece cans without inserts having a base diameter of 50 mm or more but not exceeding 80 mm
7612.90.91 Embossed aluminum cans for use in the packaging of beverages
7612.90.99 Aluminum casks, drums, cans, boxes and similar containers, for any material (other than compressed or liquefied gas), of a capacity not exceeding 300 litres, whether or not lined or heat-insulated, but not fitted with mechanical or thermal equipment, other
7613.00.00 Aluminum containers for compressed or liquefied gas
7614.10.00 Stranded wire, cables, plaited bands and the like, of aluminum, not electrically insulated, with steel core
7614.90.00 Stranded wire, cables, plaited bands and the like, of aluminum, not electrically insulated, other
7615.10.00 Aluminum table, kitchen or other household articles and parts thereof; aluminum pot scourers and scouring or polishing pads, gloves and the like
7615.20.00 Aluminum sanitary ware and parts thereof
7616.10.00 Aluminum nails, tacks, staples (other than those of heading 83.05), screws, bolts, nuts, screw hooks, rivets, cotters, cotter-pins, washers and similar articles
7616.91.00 Cloth, grill, netting and fencing, of aluminum wire
7616.99.10 Articles of aluminum: Cups for use in the manufacture of candles; Ferrules for use in the manufacture of pencils; Fish egg incubators and parts thereof; For climbing or mountaineering; Identification bands for migratory birds; Pigeon countermark leg bands; To be employed in the manufacture of sera, antisera, toxoids, viruses, toxins or antitoxins, virus or bacterial vaccines, bacteriophage or bacterial lysates, allergenics, liver extracts, pituitary extracts, epinephrine or its solutions, insulin (with or without zinc, globin or protamine), and blood plasma or serum of human origin, or fractions thereof, or extenders or substitutes thereof
7616.99.90 Other articles of aluminum, other
8418.21.00 Refrigerators, household type, compression type
8418.29.00 Refrigerators, household type, other
8450.11.10 Household washing machines, not including machines which both wash and dry, of a dry linen capacity not exceeding 10 kg, fully-automatic
8450.11.90 Household or laundry-type washing machines, including machines which both wash and dry, of a dry linen capacity not exceeding 10 kg, fully-automatic, other
8450.12.00 Household or laundry-type washing machines, including machines which both wash and dry, of a dry linen capacity not exceeding 10 kg, with built-in centrifugal dryer
8450.19.00 Household or laundry-type washing machines, including machines which both wash and dry, of a dry linen capacity not exceeding 10 kg, other
8450.20.00 Household or laundry-type washing machines, including machines which both wash and dry, of a dry linen capacity exceeding 10 kg
8532.22.00 Other fixed capacitators, aluminum electrolytic
8712.00.00 Bicycles and other cycles
8714.91.10 Frame lugs, bottom bracket shells, forks, fork tubing sets, fork bearing assemblies, hydraulic shock absorbing cylinders, spring shock absorbers, rear pivots, cable stops, cable guides and back, chain and seat stays
8714.91.90 Other frames and forks, and parts thereof
8714.92.00 Wheel rims and spokes of vehicles of headings 87.11 to 87.13, other than bicycle wheels
8714.99.10 Bicycle wheels
8716.39.10 Aluminum construction drop-centre livestock trailers having a g.v.w. of 11.778 tonnes or more and a length exceeding 12 m
9403.10.00 Metal furniture of a kind used in offices
9403.20.00 Other metal furniture
9406.90.90 Prefabricated buildings, other than of wood
9506.31.00 Golf clubs, complete
9506.99.00 Articles for sports and general physical exercise (e.g., bats, hockey sticks, playground equipment)
9620.00.93 Monopods, bipods, tripods of aluminum
Note 1: Descriptions are included for illustrative purposes and do not necessarily reflect Customs Tariff nomenclature.