Canada's Section 338 tariff and import ban: what applies to Canadian goods now
Since September 29, 2026 some Canadian alcohol, some dairy-list products and motorcycles over 800cc cannot be imported at all. The 50% Section 338 duty still applies to the rest of the three lists, the lists changed on September 15, and Section 232 goods are no longer carved out except on dairy. Here is what applies to a Canadian line today and how to check yours.
Last verified against U.S. regulations as of October 19, 2026. See our live status page for current data.
The Section 338 action against Canada has changed twice since it started on August 22, 2026. Lists were rewritten on September 15. On September 29, part of it stopped being a tariff: some Canadian products are now excluded from importation into the United States outright.
If you import from Canada, three dates decide what you owe, or whether the goods can come in at all. This guide walks through each one, shows what a real line looks like on each side of the change, and ends with what to check. For the reference detail on the program, see our Section 338 page.
The three dates
| Date (12:01 a.m. ET) | What changed |
|---|---|
| August 22, 2026 | An additional 50% on Canadian goods on three lists: headings 9903.03.12, 9903.03.13 and 9903.03.14. Goods already subject to Section 232 were excluded on all three. (Proclamations 11046, 11047 and 11048; the start date was moved from August 19 by Proclamation 11056.) |
| September 15, 2026 | Two of the lists were rewritten. Some goods came off the 50%, others went on. Section 232 goods stay excluded on the 9903.03.13 list only. (Proclamations 11064 and 11065.) |
| September 29, 2026 | Goods on the alcohol annex, the 9903.03.13 annex and motorcycles over 800cc are excluded from importation. (Proclamations 11061, 11062 and 11063; CBP CSMS 70050970.) |
The 50% and the list changes follow the entry date. The ban follows the date of importation. An entry made in August still owes what applied in August.
The import ban from September 29
Three proclamations signed on September 8 and published on September 14 say that certain products of Canada are “excluded from importation into the United States, effective with respect to goods imported on or after 12:01 a.m. eastern time on September 29, 2026.”
No duty payment brings a banned line in. The ban covers:
- Alcohol. The annex to Proclamation 11061 lists 53 provisions. On 28 of them the ban reaches only products “packaged in bottles, cans, boxes, kegs, or other similar direct-to-consumption containers.” The same product shipped in bulk is not banned, and it still pays the 50%. The other 25 provisions are banned whatever the packaging.
- Part of the
9903.03.13list. The annex to Proclamation 11062 bans 14 of that list’s provisions: whey (8 of them), molasses (5) and non-alcoholic beer (1). Milk powder and the other provisions on the list are not banned and keep the 50%. - Motorcycles. Proclamation 11063 bans one provision,
8711.50.00, motorcycles with a reciprocating engine over 800cc.
Four details matter for goods already moving:
The trigger is the date of importation, not the date of entry. Goods imported before September 29 but not yet entered are not banned. Each proclamation says they “will remain subject to the 50 percent duty rate” set by the original action.
No zone, warehouse or in-bond route. CBP’s guidance (CSMS 70050970, sent September 28) says banned goods cannot be admitted to a foreign-trade zone, entered into a bonded warehouse or moved in-bond. Entries not yet released are cancelled. Zone and warehouse goods admitted before the ban can be withdrawn, at the 50%.
ACE rejects the entry. CBP lists reject codes 239, 335 and 886 for banned lines, and the goods cannot be released.
Ten digits matter on two alcohol lines. Six provisions in the alcohol annex are printed at ten digits. On 2208.30.60 and 2208.70.00 some ten-digit lines are banned and their siblings are not. Check the full ten-digit code, never the eight-digit parent.
Who still pays the 50%
The rest of all three lists still pays an additional 50% on top of the base rate, including bulk product on the 28 packaged alcohol lines. So do banned goods imported before September 29.
USMCA origination still does not exempt you. A Canadian good with a perfect certificate of origin can still owe the full 50%. Trade-agreement preference governs the base rate. Chapter 99 additional duties follow their own rules, and this one has no origination exemption.
The duties sum on the customs value. They do not compound.
The September 15 list changes
Proclamations 11064 (alcohol list) and 11065 (9903.03.14 list) changed U.S. note 51 for goods entered on or after 12:01 a.m. ET on September 15, 2026. They took some provisions off the 50% and added others. The additions include cheeses (from 0406.10.64), more paper and aluminum profiles. The deletions include salt, cement, refined lead, tissue paper and fishing rod parts and accessories.
Two practical consequences:
A line can change between two entries a week apart. The cheese line 0406.10.64.00 from Canada carried no Section 338 duty on an entry of September 14. Entered on September 15 or later, it carries the 50% under 9903.03.12, on top of its base rate.
Some eight-digit codes no longer answer the question. From September 15, 4818.90.00, 8537.10.91, 9507.10.00, 2208.30.60 and 2208.70.00 are covered only on some of their ten-digit lines. An eight-digit code cannot tell you whether you owe the 50%.
Section 232 no longer protects most of the list
Until September 14, a Canadian good already paying a Section 232 duty was excluded from Section 338 on all three lists. From September 15, that exclusion covers the 9903.03.13 list only. Proclamations 11064 and 11065 say the alcohol and 9903.03.14 duties “shall apply in addition to duties imposed pursuant to section 232.”
So on those two lists, a 232 good now pays both. Aluminum alloy hollow profiles, 7604.21.00.10, joined the 9903.03.14 list on September 15. They already paid the 50% Section 232 duty under 9903.82.02. A Canadian shipment entered on September 14 owed the 232 duty alone. From September 15 it owes both: 100 points of additional duty, on top of a base rate that depends on whether the goods qualify for USMCA.
A good that is under Section 232 but not on any Section 338 list still pays only the 232 duty. Canadian steel pipe, 7306.30.50, is in that group: 50% today, all of it Section 232.
Civil aircraft parts: a claim, not an exclusion
Heading 9903.03.16 relieves articles of civil aircraft that meet General Note 6. It is a claim the importer makes and documents, not an automatic exclusion. A code on the civil aircraft list still carries the 50% unless the importer files under 9903.03.16 and holds the GN6 records to back it.
What our API returns for a Canadian line
Send the full ten-digit code, the origin CA and the entry date. With resolve_chapter_99=true:
- A line under the 50% returns the Section 338 measure in
additional_measures, with its Chapter 99 heading, and a total that includes it. - A banned line returns an
import_prohibitionblock naming the proclamation and the date, and no total. Insummary,total_resolved_ad_valorem_rateisnullandtotal_declined_reasonisimport_prohibited. We do not print a duty for goods that cannot be entered. - A ten-digit alcohol line in the packaged group returns both branches, because the packaging is a fact about your shipment, not the code.
Reference: API documentation.
What to do now
Check every Canadian line against the ban first. A banned line cannot be entered at any price, so a quote or purchase order on one has to change, not just its price. Use the full ten-digit code, and for alcohol, how it is packaged.
Find goods that were in transit on September 29. The date of importation decides. Goods imported before it are not banned and owe the 50%; anything not yet released when the ban took effect may have had its entry cancelled. Talk to your broker about each one.
Re-run Section 232 lines entered from September 15. If your landed-cost model still treats 232 goods as exempt from Section 338, it under-states alcohol-list and 9903.03.14-list goods by 50 points.
Stop using USMCA status as a filter. It never exempted anything from this duty.
Watch two dates. The U.S. International Trade Commission’s request for comments on implementing Section 338(g) closes on November 9, 2026 (FR 2026-18385). USTR’s comment period on the operation of USMCA closes on January 12, 2027 (FR 2026-20341). Our changelog records every data change we ship.
Common questions
Can I still import Canadian whisky, wine or beer? It depends on the ten-digit line and the packaging. The alcohol annex bans 25 provisions outright and 28 only when packaged for direct consumption. Bulk product on those 28 lines can still be imported and pays the 50%. Lines not on the annex are not banned.
What happens to goods that were already on the water on September 29? The ban applies to goods imported on or after 12:01 a.m. ET on September 29, 2026. Goods imported before that moment are not banned and stay subject to the 50%. CBP cancels entries that were not released, so check each shipment with your broker.
Can banned goods go into a foreign-trade zone or bonded warehouse? No. CBP’s guidance rules out zone admission, bonded warehouse entry and in-bond movement for banned goods. Goods admitted to a zone or warehouse before the ban can be withdrawn at the 50%.
Does USMCA exempt my goods from the Section 338 tariff? No. The duty applies regardless of USMCA origination.
Does the 50% stack on top of Section 232?
From September 15, 2026, yes on the alcohol list and the 9903.03.14 list, no on the 9903.03.13 list. Before September 15, Section 232 goods were excluded on all three.
Can the rate go above 50%? The Section 338 duty itself cannot: the statute caps it at 50%. Your total can, because the base rate and, on two of the lists, any Section 232 duty are added on top.