Some Canadian businesses may be eligible for U.S. tariff refunds

TORONTO, April 21, 2026 /CNW/ – As of this week, many small Canadian exporters may be eligible for rebates of some U.S. tariffs under a new system put in place by the U.S. government following the recent Supreme Court decision. Canadian businesses that served as the “Importer of Record” and paid U.S. tariffs on non-CUSMA compliant goods under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) between February 4, 2025, and February 24, 2026, may now be eligible for refunds.

Approximately one-third of small Canadian exporters faced tariffs on goods that did not qualify for the CUSMA exemption. One quarter (26%) of these firms were the Importer of Record and should qualify for these rebates. Unfortunately, other small Canadian exporters lowered their prices for or cost-shared with their US customers in order to keep the business affected by the tariff and will not be eligible for this relief.

“While it’s good news that some Canadian exporters may get over a year’s worth of tariff revenue back, it’s not an easy system to navigate. Canadian firms will need a U.S. customs account, a U.S. bank account, and may have to work with their customs brokers to get a refund,” said Dan Kelly, CFIB president.

CFIB is providing guidance to small businesses on this process on its website.

“In addition, these rebates will not help those businesses affected by sectoral tariffs, including steel and aluminum, cars, softwood lumber or furniture,” Kelly noted. “Sectoral tariffs are, sadly, still in place and are having a deep impact on many Canadian small firms. This mess is a reminder that Canada-US trade is not just a big business issue and progress on a renewed CUSMA agreement can’t come soon enough.”

Methodology

Preliminary results for the Your Voice – April 2026 Survey. The online survey is active since April 9, 2026, number of respondents= 1,130. For comparison purposes, a probability sample with the same number of respondents would have a margin of error of at most +/- 2.92%, 19 times out of 20.

About CFIB

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is Canada’s largest association of small and medium-sized businesses with 103,000 members across every industry and region. CFIB is dedicated to increasing business owners’ chances of success by driving policy change at all levels of government, providing expert advice and tools, and negotiating exclusive savings. Learn more at cfib.ca.

SOURCE Canadian Federation of Independent Business (Toronto)