September 29, 2026: Canada Import Bans and a Wider Pharma Tariff

Both start the same minute, but one looks at when goods are imported and the other at when they are entered.

Two changes take effect at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time on September 29, 2026: a US ban on 68 HTS lines of Canadian products, and the widening of the Section 232 tariff on patented pharmaceuticals to every importer. They run on two different clocks: the Canada ban turns on when goods are imported, and the pharmaceutical tariff turns on when goods are entered. If you have cargo on the water or on the road, know which clock applies to it.

The difference is practical. Covered Canadian goods imported before the cutoff but not yet entered still pay the 50% Section 338 duty instead of being refused. A patented drug that arrives before the cutoff gets no such protection, because only its entry date counts.

Key dates

The Merchandise Processing Fee stays 0.3464% of value, but the per-entry minimum rises from $33.58 to $34.58 and the maximum from $651.50 to $670.86 (Federal Register 2026-15530).

The Canada ban: 68 HTS lines excluded from importation

Proclamations 11061, 11062 and 11063 were signed on September 8, 2026 and published on September 14, 2026 (91 FR 58311, 91 FR 58319, 91 FR 58325). From 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time on September 29, 2026, the listed products of Canada are excluded from importation into the United States. This is a ban, not a tariff. There is no rate an importer can pay to bring covered goods in.

The ban covers 68 HTS lines:

• 53 alcoholic beverage lines: beer, wine, cider and other fermented drinks, and spirits. Of these, 25 lines are banned entirely. The other 28 are banned only when packaged in bottles, cans, boxes, kegs or similar containers for direct consumption. Bulk product under those 28 lines keeps the 50% duty.

• 14 lines of whey, molasses and non-alcoholic beer.

• 1 line of motorcycles with engines over 800 cc (HTS 8711.50.00).

There is a transition rule. Goods imported before the cutoff that have not yet been entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, stay subject to the 50% Section 338 duty instead of the ban.

Every other product on the Section 338 lists keeps the 50% duty. If a ban is invalidated, the 50% duty applies to those products instead.

CBP has published guidance on the Section 338 duties (CSMS #69606660) and on the September 15, 2026 list changes (CSMS #69851916). As of September 23, 2026, it had not published guidance implementing the bans. Gateway has posted the full list of all 68 lines with HTS codes.

The pharmaceutical tariff reaches all importers

Proclamation 11020, signed April 2, 2026 (91 FR 18183), set a 100% tariff on patented pharmaceutical articles under HTSUS heading 9903.04.60. Since July 31, 2026, that tariff has applied to the companies designated in the proclamation's Annex III.

For everyone else, heading 9903.04.61 kept patented drugs entered before 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time on September 29, 2026 at their regular duty. That carve-out ends on September 29, 2026, so from then the tariff applies to all importers of patented pharmaceuticals. The rates under the HTSUS are:

Which heading applies depends on the product, where it comes from and who imports it, so check each line before you file.

Two clocks: what to do with cargo in transit

Both changes start at the same minute, but they look at different events. Neither one turns on the date cargo was loaded or shipped.

Canada ban: the import clock. What counts is when covered goods are imported. Goods imported before 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time on September 29, 2026 can still be entered afterward, at the 50% Section 338 duty. Goods imported at or after that moment are excluded. If covered Canadian goods are moving now, ask your customs broker how the import date is set for each shipment, and keep the records that show it.

Pharmaceutical tariff: the entry clock. What counts is when goods are entered. A patented drug from a company outside Annex III that is entered before 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time on September 29, 2026 keeps its regular duty under 9903.04.61. One entered at or after that moment falls under the new rates, even if it arrived earlier. If a shipment will arrive before the cutoff, ask your broker now whether the entry can be filed in time.

In short: for a covered Canadian product, being imported before the cutoff avoids the ban but not the 50% duty. For a patented drug, only the entry date matters.

What to check this week

• Check every Canadian HTS code you import against the full list of 68 lines, or run it in Gateway's free calculator at tariff.gatewaylines.com.

• For Canadian alcohol, confirm whether your line is one of the 28 banned only when packaged. Bulk product under those lines keeps the 50% duty.

• List covered Canadian shipments that will not be imported before 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time on September 29, 2026, and settle now with your supplier and broker what happens to them.

• For covered goods already imported but not yet entered, confirm with your broker that they will be entered at the 50% duty rather than refused.

• For patented pharmaceuticals, list every shipment that will be entered at or after 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time on September 29, 2026, and confirm the 9903.04 heading for each line on the USITC tariff schedule.

• Watch CBP's CSMS messages for guidance implementing the Canada bans. None had been published as of September 23, 2026.

• Update landed-cost estimates for October 1, 2026: the Merchandise Processing Fee stays 0.3464% of value, but the per-entry minimum becomes $34.58 and the maximum $670.86.