Tax & Trade Blog

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US SUSPENDS DE MINIMIS DUTY-FREE TREATMENT

IMPORTS TO US NO LONGER BENEFIT FROM $800 DUTY-FREE LIMIT

Effective 12:01 a.m. (ET) on August 29, 2025, the United States (“US”) suspended the de minimis shipment exemption for goods imported from Canada, Mexico, and all other countries, marking a significant shift in cross-border trade rules.  The move, announced in a July 30, 2025 Executive Order by President Donald Trump, accelerates a policy change which had been expected in 2027.

This development will impact Canadian exporters who have relied on de minimis duty-free treatment to ship low-value goods to US consumers.  It will also impose new compliance obligations on carriers and exporters.

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CONTROLLED GOODS PROGRAM RENEWALS

TIMELY RENEWAL APPLICATIONS NECESSARY TO AVOID MAJOR HEADACHES

Like many other western nations, Canada regulates the possession and transfer of various military weapons and technologies through its Controlled Goods Program (respectively (“Controlled Goods” and the “CGP”).

In order to possess, examine or transfer Controlled Goods, a person must be registered (or exempt therefrom) under the CGP ("Registration" and a "Registered Party").  As Registration does not last indefinitely, Registered Parties must ensure their Registration never lapses and that required Applications for Renewal ("Renewal Applications") are prepared well in advance of their due dates.  Lapses in Registration, even only one day, can result in technical breaches, exclusion from the CGP and very serious headaches for businesses reliant on the CGP. 

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BRINGING GOLD TO CANADA?

COMPLICATED

Many newcomers to Canada arrive with valuable assets such as jewellery, gold bullion, or financial instruments.  A question we often receive is how to bring these items legally into Canada.  The answer is not always straightforward.  Canada has complex customs and financial regulations, and navigating them properly usually requires planning ahead and proper understanding of the rules.

Gold Jewellery

Under the Customs Act and its regulations, all goods brought into Canada must generally be reported at the nearest customs office.  This requirement applies no matter how the goods were acquired, whether purchased, received as a gift, or awarded as a prize.

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ELBOWS UP? DUMB STRATEGY

CANADA'S ELBOWS UP STRATEGY WAS DOOMED TO FAIL, AND IT JUST DID

As we first alluded to January 20, 2025, Canada's "retaliatory tariff" – or in the Prime Minister's view, our "elbows up" – strategy was a bad idea and of "questionable economic policy".  We also described it as a fight that Canada could not win for Bloomberg Daily Tax.

Perhaps expectedly, Prime Minister Carney has today backed off the heart and sole of that retaliatory response, creating an exception for US origin goods.

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CBSA INVESTIGATING OCTG IMPORTS - AGAIN!

OCTG FROM MEXICO, THE PHILIPPINES, TURKEY, SOUTH KOREA & USA

On August 11, 2025, the Canada Border Services Agency (“CBSA”) initiated an Investigation under the Special Import Measures Act (“SIMA”) in respect of the alleged dumping of Oil Country Tubular Goods (“OCTG”) originating in or exported from the United Mexican States, Republic of the Philippines, and originating in:

• the Republic of Türkiye (by or on behalf of Borusan Mannesmann Boru Sanayi ve Ticaret A.Ş.);
• the Republic of Korea (by or on behalf of Hyundai Steel Company); and
• the United States of America (by or on behalf of Tenaris S.A.).