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ARTICLE · 05 FEBRUARY 2025

A Tariff Primer

Fillmore Riley
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On February 1, 2025, the White House announced a sweeping tariff of 25% against most Canadian imports into the United States and a 10% tariff against Canadian energy.

CanadaInternational Law
Sven Hombach
Sven Hombach
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On February 1, 2025, the White House announced a sweeping tariff of 25% against most Canadian imports into the United States and a 10% tariff against Canadian energy. Canada promptly announced retaliatory measures. The U.S.-initiated trade war is likely to be extremely disruptive to businesses on both sides of the border, including many of Fillmore Riley's clients. We have prepared this tariff primer to explain what the tariffs are and how the U.S. and Canadian measures operate.

What are Tariffs?

Tariffs are a type of import tax, similar to a customs duty. They are paid by companies importing a product into the country and remitted to the government that imposed the tariff. Economically, they are intended to foster autarky, meaning economic self-sufficiency. Their dual purpose is to (1) force companies to produce goods domestically rather than import them, and (2) make domestic goods appear cheaper in comparison to imports by making the imports more expensive.

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