When are tariffs expected? On what? Key dates in Canada-U.S. trade dispute

OTTAWA — U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said he still intends to slap Canada with tariffs next week after a monthlong reprieve.

But Canadians confused about Trump’s plans aren’t alone, with the U.S. president at times contradicting himself about his own tariff plans.

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Timelines for when countries are hit with what level of tariffs have shifted since the original threats were made and orders were signed, and it remains unclear whether Canada can negotiate exemptions or further delays.

Here are the key dates to keep in mind right now, with the caveat that they may change along with Trump’s evolving timelines.

March 4

Trump initially signed an order on Feb. 1 imposing blanket tariffs of 25 per cent on virtually all goods entering the U.S. from Canada and Mexico, and a reduced 10 per cent tariff on energy exports, set to begin on Feb. 4.

But a few days later on Feb. 3, he “paused” the implementation of those tariffs for 30 days as Canada pledged action to secure the border.

Trump’s Feb. 1 order also imposed 10 per cent tariffs on goods entering the U.S. from China, which have gone ahead.

Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform on Feb. 27 that, citing his concerns about fentanyl flowing into the U.S., the proposed tariffs on Canada and Mexico will go into effect on March 4, “as scheduled.”

China will also be hit with an extra 10 per cent tariff on that date, he said in the post.

March 12

Trump followed up his initial tariff orders with a new salvo launched against steel and aluminum exporters.

On Feb. 10, he signed a plan to institute 25 per cent tariffs on all steel and aluminum entering the U.S., ending previous exemptions for Canada.

Those tariffs would take effect on March 12.

If Trump makes good on his promise to levy blanket tariffs on Canadian goods a week earlier, he said the new taxes on steel and aluminum would stack on top of the existing tariffs.

That would bring the effective import tax on Canadian steel and aluminum to 50 per cent as of March 12, if both sets of tariffs move forward.

April 1

On Trump’s first day in office, he signed an executive order to enact the “America First Trade Policy.”

That order called for his trade and commerce officials to report back to him by April 1 on a sweeping review of U.S. trade policy and relationships.

That date does not come with an imposition of any tariffs by default, but does direct Trump’s administration to begin examining the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement, which Trump signed in 2018, ahead of a planned 2026 review.

April 2

In his Feb. 27 Truth Social post, Trump said that April 2 would mark the start of “reciprocal” tariffs — taxes on foreign products entering the U.S. that match levies on American goods.

Trump has given little indication on the scope these reciprocal tariffs would take, but he signed a memorandum on Feb. 13 directing his trade czar to examine what he perceives as unfair trade practices from other nations.

A fact sheet accompanying that memorandum flagged Canada’s digital services tax targeting tech giants doing business in the country as one such measure the U.S. might like to see addressed with reciprocal tariffs.

Trump has also threatened to levy tariffs on imported automobiles coming into the U.S.

He said on Feb. 14 that those tariffs could come “around April 2,” adding the following week that the levies would be “in the neighbourhood of 25 per cent.”

Around the same time, he floated imposing similar tariffs on pharmaceuticals and semiconductors, but has yet to provide a timeline for those.

— With files from Kelly Geraldine Malone in Washington

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 27, 2025.

Craig Lord, The Canadian Press