Since 12:01 a.m. on September 29, 2026, bottles, cans and kegs of Canadian beer, wine, cider and spirits can no longer be imported into the United States. For five weeks before that they paid an extra 50%. A small distillery that sent a quarter of its whisky south now sends none. This page is what changed, who it hits, the reason the White House gives, and where the makers are.
bottles, cans, boxes, kegs, or other similar direct-to-consumption containers. A tanker of wine or spirits for bottling in the United States still enters, at 50%.6,5
The measures in full, and every code.
Mostly spirits. The US imported US$673 million of Canadian spirits in 2025, against US$62.1 million of wine and US$19.2 million of beer, by US Census Bureau figures reported by CBC.10 Spirits Canada says about half of what its members make is shipped to the United States, and 93% of Canada’s spirits exports went there last year.11
The bulk rule decides who can adapt. Crown Royal already ships whisky in bulk to a bottling plant in Illinois, a Vermont liquor official said, and bulk is exempt.12 A maker that bottles in Canada has no such door. Maverick Distillery, which sent 20 to 25% of its product south, sent two trailers on the last afternoon to beat the deadline.11 Sons of Vancouver shipped a few pallets of rye a year; that’ll be the last of it for who knows how long
, its founder told CBC.10
Proclamation 11046 found that beginning in March 2025, all Canadian provinces and territories halted the purchase, distribution, or retailing of U.S. alcoholic beverages
, and that Canadian imports of American alcohol fell about 81%.2 The ban proclamation of September 8 says Canada kept that discrimination in place and cites Saskatchewan’s 50% levy on US alcohol, announced August 27.14 Ontario’s shelves were cleared on March 4, 2025, the day a 25% American tariff on Canadian goods took effect; Saskatchewan’s levy names the US duty of August 22 as its reason.15,16,17 The dates are below; the full chronology quotes each side.
On March 4, 2025 the Ontario government directed the LCBO to stop selling and importing all US beverage alcohol (about 3,600 products, roughly C$1 billion in annual sales); the SAQ removed all US products at Quebec's request the same day; Nova Scotia and New Brunswick ordered removals by March 4.
Answers Mar 4, 2025: 25% IEEPA duty on Canadian goods takes effect
S. S. alcoholic beverages fell about 81 percent (from about $718 million to about $137 million) between March 2025-February 2026 and the prior year. 12) from August 19, 2026, a start delayed three days to August 22 by Proclamation 11056.
Answers Mar 4, 2025: Ontario, Quebec, BC and other provinces pull US alcohol from shelves
During the three-day suspension of the Section 338 duties, Nova Scotia's premier said the Prime Minister had asked provinces to put American alcohol back on their shelves as Canada finalized a trade deal with the United States.
Answers Aug 18, 2026: Section 338 duties suspended three days; start moves to August 22
m. 16 at 0 percent for Section 232 goods, passenger vehicles and parts, wood products, semiconductors, pharmaceuticals and civil aircraft. Canada suspended trade negotiations on August 21, 2026 and announced counter-tariffs for September 8, 2026.
Saskatchewan, which had returned US alcohol to its shelves in June 2025, announced a 50 percent levy on US-origin alcohol ordered by retailers through the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority from September 8, 2026, in answer to the US duty of August 22.
Answers Aug 22, 2026: 50% Section 338 duties take effect on 554 Canadian tariff lines
On September 8, 2026, hours after Canada's counter-tariffs began, the President signed five proclamations. m.
Answers Sep 8, 2026: Canada's counter-tariffs on C$27.6 billion of US goods, Jul 20, 2026: First-ever use of Section 338: 50 per cent duties on Canadian goods
m. eastern on September 29, 2026 the three exclusion proclamations bar the importation of the Canadian alcoholic beverages, dairy products and motor-vehicle-group products listed in their annexes, which until then carried the 50 percent duty.
Answers Aug 27, 2026: Saskatchewan puts a 50% levy on US alcohol from September 8, Sep 8, 2026: United States Surtax Order (2026): 15/25/50% on C$27.6B of US goods, Mar 4, 2025: Ontario, Quebec, BC and other provinces pull US alcohol from shelves, Apr 9, 2025: 25% surtax on US vehicles mirrors US Section 232 auto tariff
The American market closed; the Canadian one did not. Choose the Canadian-made bottle when you were going to buy one anyway: whisky from a small distillery, a Niagara or Okanagan wine, a local cider or mead. The Alcohol section of the directory lists Canadian distillers, wineries, breweries, cideries and meaderies by drink and province. Buy from the maker’s own shop, the tasting room or your liquor store. Direct shipping of alcohol is governed province by province, so a maker in another province may not be able to ship to you; check your own province’s rules first. We link out to makers and sell nothing here.
Not if it is shipped after 12:01 a.m. eastern on September 29, 2026 in bottles, cans, boxes or kegs. CBP rejects any entry containing it. Stock that crossed the border before then can still be sold, and bulk shipments for bottling in the United States are outside the ban on most lines.
No. The Section 338 proclamations apply to listed products of Canada whether or not they qualify under CUSMA, and the ban proclamation makes no exception for them.
The proclamation and CBP's guidance say nothing about travellers or personal imports. Until CBP says otherwise, assume a visitor may not be able to bring Canadian alcohol home.
No. Maple syrup is on none of the Section 338 lists. A maple spirit or maple wine is alcohol and is covered.
Buy Canadian-made drinks from the people who make them, in Canada, in the amounts you would anyway. Rules on shipping alcohol to your door differ by province, so check yours before ordering from a maker in another one.
Sources for these answers are the ban proclamation, CBP’s guidance of September 28, and the tariffs overview.4,5
The American market closed to them on September 29. Buying from them in Canada is the one door still open. Provincial rules on shipping alcohol to your door vary, so check your own.
Montague, Prince Edward Island · Shopify shop
Company size not establishedMain products hit
A Montague brewery, kitchen and taproom brewing Parkman Ave and Juno IPAs, Broadside APA, Flora Czech pilsner made with PEI floor-malt, Ken's Stout, Rabble Rouser Red, Centennial Stock blonde and a wild blueberry sour, in cans and kegs, with private-label runs for weddings and events.
Copper Bottom Brewing's packaged beer (HTS 2203.00.00, "Beer made from malt") can no longer ship to the US: the US import ban on listed Canadian alcohol took effect September 29, 2026, after a 50% Section 338 duty that applied from August 22, 2026. We found no public statement from the maker about US sales. · whitehouse.gov, Sep 8, 2026
Penticton, British Columbia · Online shop
Company size not establishedMain products hit
Creek & Gully makes wild-fermented, unfined and unfiltered ciders from its own organic fruit, including Flora, a blend of every apple variety the cidery gets in a vintage, Crabby-Pear (Bartlett pear and Hyslop crabapple), Pink Lady, a Reserve Traditional Method cider from Bulmer's Norman, Michelin and Dabinett apples, and a 100% pear Reserve Traditional Method, in cans and bottles.
Creek & Gully's packaged cider (HTS 2206.00.15, "Cider, fermented, whether still or sparkling") can no longer ship to the US: the US import ban on listed Canadian alcohol took effect September 29, 2026, after a 50% Section 338 duty from August 22, 2026. Its perry (100% pear) sits on the same line. · whitehouse.gov, Sep 8, 2026
Summerland, British Columbia · Shopify shop
Company size not establishedMain products hit
Dominion makes wild-fermented, small-batch ciders in 473 ml cans, among them First Principles, a very dry cider from estate-grown English and French cider apples, Lost Generation, a dry perry from Summerland pears, and fruit ciders like Halcyon Days and Nom de Plume, plus experimental 750 ml bottles and kegs for bars.
Dominion's packaged cider (HTS 2206.00.15, "Cider, fermented, whether still or sparkling") can no longer ship to the US: the US import ban on listed Canadian alcohol took effect September 29, 2026, after a 50% Section 338 duty from August 22, 2026. Its Lost Generation perry sits on the same line. · whitehouse.gov, Sep 8, 2026
The additional rate of duty on potash that is not subject to subsection (a) of this section shall be reduced to 10 percent in lieu of 25 percent.· read 2026-09-09
For example, on March 4, 2025, the Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) ceased purchasing all U.S. products and canceled existing orders where contractually possible; removed all U.S. products from wholesale product catalogues and retail eCommerce sites; and removed all U.S. products from LCBO retail stores and outlets.· read 2026-09-29
Effective with respect to goods from Canada entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after 12:01 a.m. eastern standard time on August 22, 2026· read 2026-09-09
Products that will be subject to the import ban in this proclamation that were imported, but not yet entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, prior to September 29, 2026, will remain subject to the 50 percent duty rate established by Proclamation 11046.· read 2026-09-29
Alcoholic beverages that do not meet an applicable scope limitation are not subject to the import exclusion and remain subject to the applicable 50 percent ad valorem duty under Proclamation 11046.· read 2026-09-29
A subheading marked with "Packaged" includes only alcohol products that are packaged in bottles, cans, boxes, kegs, or other similar direct-to-consumption containers· read 2026-09-29
A 50% ad valorem Section 338 tariff shall no longer apply to the following articles of Canada.· read 2026-09-29
For instance, whisky and liqueurs, two of Canada's top alcoholic beverage exports to the US, are exempt from the ban when sold in containers larger than four liters. In those cases, they also won't face any tariffs.· read 2026-09-29
The duty-free de minimis exemption provided under 19 U.S.C. 1321(a)(2)(C) shall no longer apply to any shipment· read 2026-09-09
The U.S. imported $673 million US worth of spirits from Canada in 2025, compared to $62.1 million US worth of wine and just $19.2 million US worth of beer that same year, according to trade data from the U.S. Census Bureau.· read 2026-09-29
Spirits Canada said about half of the nearly $2 billion in product its industry produces annually is shipped to the U.S., and last year, 93 per cent of all exported spirits was headed to the U.S.· read 2026-09-29
Knight said liquor products that are transported in bulk from Canada to be bottled in the U.S. are exempt from the ban. That includes Crown Royal, which has a bottling plant in Illinois.· read 2026-09-29
Wine Growers of Canada previously told Global News about $8.3 million of wine was exported to the U.S. in 2025, 57 per cent of which was represented by ice wine alone.· read 2026-09-29
rather than remove Canada's discriminatory treatment of or unreasonable and unequal imposition on U.S. alcoholic beverages, Canadian authorities maintained the discrimination and announced additional retaliation· read 2026-09-29
the government of Ontario has directed LCBO to take operational steps to implement restrictions on all U.S. beverage alcohol sales and related imports into Ontario, effective immediately.· read 2026-09-09
In response to the 50 per cent tariff on Canadian alcohol the United States of America (USA) enacted on August 22nd, Saskatchewan will reciprocate with a 50 per cent levy on USA alcohol imported into Saskatchewan, effective September 8th.· read 2026-09-29
Primary sources are the documents themselves: proclamations, orders, customs notices, statutes. Secondary sources are law-firm or encyclopedia summaries we used where the original could not be read directly.
We are not customs brokers or lawyers. Every fact above comes from the document cited beside it. Please drink responsibly, and only if you are of legal drinking age in your province. Last reviewed against the sources on 2026-09-09.
