What is the tariff for lumber going to the United States from Canada?
Executive summary
Current U.S. tariffs on Canadian softwood lumber are layered and shifting: as of late‑2025 the United States imposed a 10% Section 232 tariff on softwood timber and lumber effective October 14, 2025, on top of existing Commerce Department anti‑dumping and countervailing duties that in recent administrative reviews have amounted to roughly 14.5%, producing a stack of duties that many producers and analysts count as roughly 24.5% in baseline cases — though total effective rates vary by company and product and some reporting cites higher combined totals when additional measures are included [1] [2] [3].
1. The present legal stack: Section 232 plus AD/CVD — what’s applied now
The Trump administration’s Section 232 action announced in September 2025 put a universal 10% tariff on imports of softwood timber and lumber (effective October 14, 2025), and that 10% applies to Canadian shipments entered under the relevant HTSUS codes unless specific exemptions are claimed [1] [4]. Separately, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s antidumping and countervailing duty (AD/CVD) regime has long assessed company‑specific duties on Canadian producers; the most recent administrative reviews raised those duties to about 14.54% in mid‑2024, a figure repeated in industry summaries and guidance for exporters [2] [3]. When those obligations are combined in many cases, the straightforward arithmetic yields roughly 24.54% (10% Section 232 + ~14.54% AD/CVD) against many Canadian softwood lumber shipments [3] [4].
2. Why some sources report much higher totals (35% and above)
Some Canadian and U.S. industry analyses report much higher “total tariff” figures because they add additional layers — for example prior anti‑dumping/countervailing rates that some producers face reached higher company‑specific levels after earlier reviews, and other product categories (like upholstered furniture, cabinets and vanities) were targeted with separate, larger levies that can reach 25% initially and were slated to rise — producing headlines of 35% to 45% on certain wood products [5] [6] [7]. The Globe and Mail and government summaries note that for many Canadian producers, Commerce’s AD/CVD duties plus the new Section 232 duties have produced effective import taxes on softwood products exceeding 35% in some reported calculations, while NAHB and trade groups compute still different totals depending on which duties and product codes they include [7] [6].
3. Trade‑agreement carveouts and the USMCA complication
Under normal USMCA (CUSMA) rules, qualifying Canadian softwood lumber can enter duty‑free; that status is relevant because in some political episodes the administration signaled exceptions or carveouts but legal determinations and tariff applicability depend on whether imports comply with USMCA origin and documentation rules and how the Section 232 proclamation is interpreted and applied [1]. The Congress Library note explains that Canadian softwood “normally can enter the United States duty free” under USMCA, even as the executive branch uses trade remedy and national‑security authorities to levy universal or company‑specific duties [1].
4. Fluid policy environment and recent reversals
The tariff landscape has been volatile: while several sources report scheduled increases to 30% or 50% for certain wooden goods on January 1, 2026, legal updates and practitioner notes indicate the U.S. government later announced it would not proceed with some of those planned increases, underscoring that announced rates and implemented rates have diverged and that exporters must monitor official Commerce and Customs guidance closely [1] [8]. Canadian government FAQs and law‑firm timelines also document the October 14, 2025 imposition of 10% and 25% tariffs and the public discussion of potential increases, reinforcing that the situation remained time‑sensitive and administratively complex [4] [9].
5. Bottom line and practical answer
For a straightforward response: Canadian softwood lumber shipments commonly face a roughly 10% Section 232 tariff plus roughly 14.5% in Commerce Department AD/CVD duties as of the latest administrative reviews, producing about a 24.5% combined rate in many cases; however, company‑specific AD/CVD rates, separate tariffs on related wood products, USMCA origin status, and subsequent administrative decisions mean the effective tariff can be both higher or lower in particular transactions, and some commentators report combined burdens above 35% for many Canadian exporters [4] [2] [6] [7].