50% US duties on Canadian dairy take effect 22 August 2026 after a three-day delay

Import ban on whey, molasses and non-alcoholic beer from 29 September 2026

Proclamation 11062, signed 8 September 2026 and published in the Federal Register on 14 September (document 2026-18836), excludes a defined list of Canadian products from importation, effective for goods imported on or after 12:01 a.m. eastern time on 29 September 2026. Its Annex I lists whey protein concentrates, modified whey, fluid whey and dried whey (HTSUS 0404.10.05 to 0404.10.90), invert molasses (1702.90.35), cane and other molasses (1703.10.30, 1703.10.50, 1703.90.30 and 1703.90.50) and non-alcoholic beer (2202.91.00). The proclamation moves these products from the 50% duty to the import ban and says it does not otherwise affect the products that remain subject to the 50% duty imposed by Proclamation 11047.

Under CBP's guidance (CSMS #70050970, 28 September 2026), the exclusion bars admission into a foreign trade zone or bonded warehouse, in-bond transportation and entry for consumption, and CBP rejects entries containing covered products from 12:01 a.m. eastern time on 29 September. Products imported before that time but not yet entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, remain subject to the 50% duty, per the proclamation.

CBP's CSMS #69851916 (11 September 2026) says the 15 September changes added classifications to HTSUS 9903.03.12 and 9903.03.14 and removed some, and that there are no changes to the classifications under HTSUS 9903.03.13, the dairy subheading. Proclamation 11062 itself, however, refers to a proclamation of 8 September 2026 modifying the scope of the products of Canada subject to the additional dairy duties, and we could not find or read the text of that document. The dairy scope in this alert is therefore taken from Proclamation 11047 as described in the sections below, and whether it has been modified is not confirmed as of 1 October 2026.

What's actually in effect, and since when

Proclamation 11056, signed 18 August 2026, reset the effective date of additional 50% ad valorem duties imposed under Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930 by three earlier proclamations — from 12:01 a.m. ET on 19 August to 12:01 a.m. ET on 22 August 2026. The three underlying proclamations were all signed 20 July 2026: Proclamation 11046 covers alcoholic beverages, 11047 covers dairy, and 11048 covers motor vehicles. For dairy specifically, Proclamation 11047's annex covers Canadian dairy products and caseins, and also reaches sugar-containing products and nonalcoholic beverages — not 'cheeses of all types' broadly, a phrase that actually describes Canada's own USMCA tariff-rate-quota allocation against US cheese exports, the stated grievance behind the US measure, not the scope of what's being taxed. The whey, molasses and non-alcoholic beer lines described in the previous section have since moved from this duty to the import ban.

Per CBP guidance and customs-broker readings, the duties are reported under HTSUS 9903.03.13 for dairy at the 50% rate (9903.03.12 for alcoholic beverages, 9903.03.14 for motor vehicles), with separate 0% subheadings for excluded categories like steel, aluminum and copper derivatives. When this alert was first published, these subheadings were not yet reflected in the USITC-published Harmonized Tariff Schedule, so treat them as CBP filing guidance per CBP's own CSMS #69606660, issued 21 August 2026. Whether the HTS has since been revised was not rechecked for this update.

The three-day gap, and what it does and doesn't mean

Because Proclamation 11056 was signed on 18 August — one day before the original 19 August effective date — it isn't established that any duties were actually collected during the 19-22 August gap. The proclamation does not affirmatively direct refunds; it states only that where implementation 'requires a refund of duties collected, refunds shall be processed pursuant to applicable law and CBP's standard procedures.' Importers who filed entries in that window should check whether the additional duty was assessed before assuming a refund is owed.

USMCA origin provides no exemption here: the 50% stacks on top of existing duties, taxes and fees unless a specific carve-out applies. Covered goods remain subject to any applicable antidumping and countervailing duties on top of this measure, and goods entering a foreign trade zone must be admitted under Privileged Foreign status to lock in the rate at time of entry rather than time of withdrawal.

Update, 1 October 2026

Since first publication on 18 August 2026, the change we have confirmed is that Proclamation 11062 replaced the 50% duty with an import ban from 29 September 2026 on the whey, molasses and non-alcoholic beer lines listed above. Proclamation 11062 also refers to a proclamation of 8 September 2026 modifying the scope of the products of Canada subject to the additional dairy duties. We could not locate that text, so any other change to the dairy scope is unresolved as of 1 October 2026. We found no change to the 50% rate or the 22 August start date for the other covered lines.