Trump Threatens 35% Tariffs on Canadian Imports

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans to impose a 35% tariff on Canadian goods starting on Aug. 1, although he exempted goods that comply with the countries' free-trade agreement.
• Trump announced the Canadian tariffs as he threatened levies of 15% or 20% on most trading partners in an NBC News interview, up from the current 10%.
• Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney responded to the threat of the 35% tariff by saying the countries would work toward striking a deal before the Aug. 1 deadline. 

U.S. President Donald Trump announced in a letter on his Truth Social platform plans to impose a 35% tariff on Canadian goods starting on Aug. 1,  although he has exempted goods that comply with the countries’ free-trade agreement.

The announcement came less than two weeks before a self-imposed July 21 deadline cited by Ottawa when it scrapped the digital services tax it was planning to levy on tech firms.

A Trump administration official said there was an exemption for goods complying with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, as well as the energy and potash tariffs currently at 10%, though "no final paper has been drafted and no final decisions by POTUS been made."

"Instead of working with the United States, Canada retaliated with its own Tariffs," Trump wrote in the letter, adding that "if Canada works with me to stop the flow of Fentanyl, we will, perhaps, consider an adjustment to this letter."

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney responded to the threat of the 35% tariff by saying the countries would work toward striking a deal before the Aug. 1 deadline. "Throughout the current trade negotiations with the United States, the Canadian government has steadfastly defended our workers and businesses," Carney wrote in an X post. "We will continue to do so as we work towards the revised deadline of August 1."

Trump's letter came as he threatened tariffs of 15% or 20% on most trading partners in an NBC News interview, up from the current 10%. "We're just going to say all of the remaining countries are going to pay, whether it’s 20% or 15%. We'll work that out now," Trump said.

UPDATE—July 11, 2025: This article has been updated to add the expected exemption of goods that comply with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada agreement per a Trump administration official.