US Surtax Remission: Can Your Business Skip or Recover the Surtax?

October 30, 2026

Since the counter-tariffs, Canada has charged an extra surtax on many goods imported from the United States. The government's remission order lets eligible businesses skip that surtax, or get it back. It is for importers whose US goods are used to make, process or package products or to produce agricultural products, or are for health care and public safety. If you qualify, your broker puts a remission code on your customs declaration. Already paid the surtax? You can usually claim it back within two years of the import date.

Does this apply to my business?

You may qualify if you import US goods for use in Canada in one of these ways:

• Manufacturing or processing. Making any good. Processing includes assembling, adjusting or modifying goods. Machinery used in the process and inputs that become part of the finished product can qualify.
• Agricultural production (farming, forestry, fishing). Goods used to produce an agricultural product.
• Food and beverage packaging. The packaging qualifies (for example, empty cans or bottles). The food or drink going into it does not, unless it is also being processed. The packaging must be for food or drinks for sale.
• Health care. Goods for medically necessary care at hospitals, health or dental clinics, labs and long-term care homes, and for health authorities and blood, cell, tissue or organ services.
• Public health, safety and security. Goods for use by entities like ambulance and emergency services, fire services, police, corrections, public health offices, National Defence, the Canadian Forces and CSIS.

Some goods qualify because they are named on a schedule to the order, whatever you use them for. Some schedule entries apply only to named importers or set dates. One example: motor vehicles listed in Schedule 5, plus ATVs, side-by-sides and hearses, are relieved of the 2025 motor-vehicle surtax. Your broker checks these by tariff number.

Usually does not qualify:

• Goods used for repair.
• Supplies for workers or general upkeep, like PPE or hand soap.
• Equipment used only to store or move goods before or after processing.
• Goods you resell as-is, unless they are on a schedule or you are importing them for use by one of the listed health-care or public-safety entities.
• Food storage containers for personal use. Packaging only counts for food or drinks for sale.
• Goods for health or safety use if you are not importing them for one of the listed entities.

Good to know:

• Your finished product can be exported. It does not have to stay in Canada.
• Non-resident importers (NRIs) can claim too.
• It is up to you, the importer, to show how the goods qualify.

What to do

1. Check with your broker before the entry is filed. Tell them what the goods are and how you will use them. They match the goods to the right path and code.
2. Keep your proof. Invoices, purchase orders, shipping documents and records of how the goods are used. CBSA can ask for them.
3. Watch the deadlines.
   • Health-care and public-safety claims, and some steel and aluminum manufacturing claims, need the goods imported before July 1, 2027. Some steel/aluminum and named-importer schedules have earlier dates or set windows. Manufacturing claims on the 2025 and 2026 counter-tariffs, and several schedules, have no import deadline.
   • You have two years from the import date to claim.
   • Missed the code on the original entry? Your broker can file a correction or an adjustment to get the surtax relieved or refunded.

Details for your customs team / broker

CBSA updated Customs Notice 25-19 on 11 September 2026 and revised it on 8 October 2026. The United States Surtax Remission Order (2025) now also remits surtax payable under the United States Surtax Order (2026) where the relevant Remission Order section or schedule includes that Order (see code table). That is the Sep 8 counter-tariff order covered in CN 26-23.

In short: claim remission on the Commercial Accounting Declaration (CAD) by putting the matching 25-0466* special authorization code in the Special Authority OIC field. Where remission is granted, you still declare the surtax as well as the remission. Keep records. For all claim paths you have two years after the date of importation to claim to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness (Order s. 5(c)).

This follows our Sep 8 briefs (counter-tariffs and CAD surtax codes). Those posts cover when surtax applies and which 26186* codes to declare. This post covers how to claim remission when you qualify under the Remission Order.

Checklist: claim US surtax remission on the CAD

1. Confirm which surtax Order applies to the line. Remission under CN 25-19 can cover surtax under United States Surtax Order (2025-1), (2026), Steel and Aluminum 2025, and/or Motor Vehicles 2025. Which ones depends on the remission section (see code table below). Match your tariff item to the Order schedules. Do not assume coverage.

2. Confirm you are the importer claiming. Claims must be made by the importer (private or public sector). That may include non-resident importers (CN 25-19 para 14).

3. Pick the matching 25-0466* code and enter it in the CAD Special Authority OIC field (para 38; coding detail in Memorandum D17-1-10).

4. Still declare the surtax when remission is granted (para 38). Remission does not mean leaving the surtax field blank.

5. Keep supporting documents that show you meet the Order conditions. For example: CAD, purchase order, commercial invoice, Canada customs invoice, bill of lading, waybill (para 15). CBSA may ask for manufacturing/processing/packaging proof (paras 27, 36).

6. Watch the import-window conditions for your path (para 15). Sections 1 and 2, and s. 3 claims for goods in Steel and Aluminum Schedules 1 / 1.1, require import before 1 July 2027 (para 15 a, a.01). Section 3 claims for goods in Steel and Aluminum Schedules 2 / 2.1 require import before 1 February 2026 (para 15 a.02). Section 3 claims on 2025-1 or 2026 surtax have no import-date condition. For s. 3.1 (code 25-0466S01), goods must be imported on or after 1 February 2026 and before 1 July 2027 (para 15 a.03). Do not treat this as a simple "before 1 Feb 2026" steel path. Schedule 3 goods must be imported before the date in column 3 (para 15 a.04). Schedule 4 goods (code 25-0466Q01) must be imported before 1 September 2025. Schedule 4.1 goods must be imported during the period specified in column 4 of that schedule (para 15 a.1 and a.2). Both are BN-specific. No importation time limit applies for goods under section 4.3 or Schedules 1, 2, 5, or 6 (para 16).

7. Claim within two years after the date of importation to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness (para 15). No other Customs Tariff surtax relief may already have been granted for the same good.

8. Missed it on the original CAD?

   • Correction up to the CAD payment due date: reason code R5-00-COT (D17-1-5).
   • Adjustment after the due date (refund path): reason code R2-74-1-GR-53 (D17-2-1).

Special authorization codes (enter in Special Authority OIC)

Code	Use when (per CN 25-19)
25-0466A	Public health, public safety, national security (Order ss. 1 & 5)
25-0466B	Health care (ss. 2 & 5)
25-0466C	Manufacture, processing, or food/beverage packaging (ss. 3 & 5)
25-0466S01	Aircraft / ground flying trainers / spacecraft / motor-vehicle (incl. chassis/parts) manufacture under s. 3.1 (Steel and Aluminum 2025 only)
25-0466D	Schedule 1 listed goods (ss. 4 & 5)
25-0466M	Schedule 2 listed goods (s. 4.1)
25-0466E / 25-0466P01 / 25-0466P02	Schedule 3 item groups (see para 45 for item ranges)
25-0466Q01	Schedule 4 BN-specific goods (s. 4.2) (Surtax Order 2025-1 and Steel & Aluminum 2025 only — not the Surtax Order (2026))
25-0466R01–R23	Schedule 4.1 BN-specific goods by item (para 48)
25-0466N	Schedule 5 motor vehicles / ATVs / side-by-sides / hearses (s. 4.3) (Motor Vehicles 2025 surtax only)
25-0466T01	Schedule 6 goods (Steel and Aluminum 2025) (Order s. 4.4)

Historical Schedule 4 codes 25-0466F–L in para 46 are kept for the pre–15 Oct 2025 Order text. Use them only if that historical path still applies to your entry.

Do not invent a code. If your goods are only on a schedule row with a BN and date window, use the schedule-specific code and the Order text, not 25-0466C by habit.

Manufacturing / processing / packaging: the rules

Under sections 3 and 5 (para 6), remission can apply to goods imported for use in Canada in:

• manufacturing or processing of any good
• production of any agricultural product
• packaging of a food product or beverage

Under the Customs Tariff, processing includes adjustment, assembly, or modification of goods.

CN 25-19 clarifies (paras 24–34):

• The finished good may be exported. It does not have to stay in Canada.
• Manufacturing/processing is generally aimed at activities in NAICS chapters 31–33; agricultural production at NAICS chapter 11.
• Eligible inputs are generally machinery used in the process and direct inputs that form an integral part of the manufactured/processed product. Goods for worker upkeep (e.g. hand soap, PPE) or equipment used only for storage/transport before or after processing may not qualify.
• For packaging, the packaging product can qualify. The product being packaged does not (unless it separately qualifies as a manufacturing/processing input). Packaging must be for food or beverage products for sale. Personal storage containers do not qualify.
• Repair is not a remission use (para 37).

It is the importer's job to show how the goods qualify.

Public health, safety, national security, and health care

Paras 4–5 list the entity and use paths (hospitals, clinics, labs, long-term care, blood/organ entities, health authorities, emergency response, firefighting, law enforcement, corrections, DND, Canadian Forces, CSIS, and related research/medical-countermeasure entities). "For use by" means use by a listed entity. Commercial importers who are not importing for those entities are not eligible under those sections (paras 18–23).

If your goods are not under the Remission Order

If you are not covered by the Order's sections/schedules, Finance Canada assesses individual remission requests under the government's remission framework. Start from Finance's surtax remission information and contact remissions-remises@fin.gc.ca (CN 25-19 para 62). Put "U.S. Remission" in the subject line. Only companies registered in Canada can make a request (Finance Canada). This path is for exceptional cases. It is not a substitute for checking whether a 25-0466* code already applies.

FAQ

Are non-resident importers (NRIs) eligible?
Yes. Claims must be made by the importer, which may include non-resident importers (para 14). You still need to meet the Order's use/schedule conditions and keep records.

What if I already paid the surtax and forgot the remission code?
File a CAD correction before the payment due date (R5-00-COT) or an adjustment after it (R2-74-1-GR-53), with the correct Special Authority OIC code (paras 53–55).

Do Courier Low Value Shipment (CLVS) goods get this automatically?
Usually not. CN 25-19 para 17 points to Memorandums D17-4-0 and D8-2-16 and notes most CLVS goods may not meet the Order conditions. If surtax applied and you are eligible, after those courier processes you can request an adjustment by submitting a CAD in CARM's Commercial Client Portal with the correct special authorization code.

Does claiming remission mean I skip declaring the Sep 8 26186* surtax codes?
No. Para 38: where remission has been granted, surtax must be declared in addition to the applicable remission. Use this post for 25-0466*. Use the Sep 8 CAD surtax codes post for the surtax codes themselves.

Is every US-origin input for a factory automatically remitted?
No. You must fit a section or schedule path, meet timing/BN conditions where they apply, use the right code, and be able to prove use. When in doubt, check the Order text and ask your broker before the CAD locks.

Sources

• Customs Notice 25-19: United States Surtax Remission Order (2025) (updated 11 Sep 2026; revised 8 Oct 2026)
• Customs Notice 26-23: United States Surtax Order (2026) (updated 23 Oct 2026)
• United States Surtax Remission Order (2025), SOR/2025-122
• Memorandum D17-1-10: Coding of Customs Accounting Documents
• Memorandum D17-1-5: Accounting for Commercial Goods
• Memorandum D17-2-1: Adjusting Commercial Accounting Declarations
• Finance Canada — remission framework for surtaxes

Not sure if your goods qualify? J.W. Smith can check your goods, put the right remission code on your entry, and keep the paperwork on file in case CBSA asks.