Signal US Converts Section 338 Tariffs on Canadian Goods Into Outright Import Bans

Summary

Effective 12:01 a.m. Eastern time on September 29, 2026, the United States escalated Section 338 measures on certain Canadian-origin goods from a 50% tariff to an outright import ban, with no USMCA exemption. Banned products include motorcycles, alcoholic beverages such as packaged wine, beer, cider and spirits, dairy ingredients and whey products, and molasses and sugar-processing products. The new proclamations extend and expand five Section 338 proclamations President Trump signed on September 8, 2026, which themselves modified measures announced on July 20, 2026. On September 8, dairy and wood products, furniture, and motorboats had already been added to the covered list. As of September 29, Canadian packaged alcoholic beverages cannot be imported into the U.S. at all. The move marks a shift in trade-policy tools from cost-based tariffs to outright market access denial.