US President Donald Trump on Thursday announced a 35 per cent tariff on all goods imported from Canada, citing Canada’s alleged failure to curb the flow of fentanyl into the United States as a key reason behind the move. The new tariff will take effect from August 1, 2025.
In a letter sent to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney—later shared on Trump’s social media platform Truth Social—the former president said the decision was necessary due to Canada’s “lack of cooperation” in addressing the fentanyl crisis, and retaliatory tariffs imposed by Ottawa.
“As you will recall, the United States imposed tariffs on Canada to deal with our Nation’s Fentanyl crisis… Instead of working with the United States, Canada retaliated. Starting August 1, 2025, we will charge Canada a Tariff of 35%,” Trump wrote.
The letter warned that any attempt to evade the new tariffs through transshipment would be met with the same penalties. However, Trump offered Canadian companies the option to avoid tariffs altogether—by manufacturing goods within the United States, promising expedited approvals.
He also slammed Canada’s existing trade practices, accusing it of imposing excessive tariffs on American dairy exports—up to 400%—and creating a “major threat” to the US economy and national security through a significant trade deficit.
Trump further warned that if Canada were to raise tariffs on US goods in retaliation, his administration would increase US tariffs by a matching rate.
“If Canada works with me to stop the flow of Fentanyl, we will, perhaps, consider an adjustment to this letter,” he added, leaving room for diplomatic negotiation.
This announcement follows similar tariff measures imposed by Trump on other countries. On Wednesday, he declared a 50 per cent tariff on Brazilian imports and announced fresh tariffs ranging from 20 to 30 per cent on goods from Sri Lanka, Algeria, Iraq, Libya, the Philippines, Moldova, and Brunei.
Trump has emphasized that these tariffs will go into effect without delay or extensions, beginning August 1, 2025, as part of a broader push for economic and trade reform.
The White House has released copies of the letters sent to leaders of all affected nations, making it clear that failure to align with US trade expectations will result in strict economic penalties.
