SOR/2026-34 is the Steel Derivative Goods Surtax Remission Order. It is the federal government's relief valve for the 25% surtax on steel-based products: where goods qualify under the order, the surtax does not have to be paid, and surtax already paid on qualifying goods can be claimed back. CBSA explains how it administers the order in Customs Notice 26-07.
Why remission orders exist
The surtax under SOR/2025-267 was applied broadly, to steel derivative goods from every country. A blanket 25% inevitably catches goods the government did not intend to burden. Rather than rewrite the surtax order, the government grants remission: a defined set of circumstances in which the surtax is forgiven. The remission order is law, published in the Canada Gazette, with the same force as the surtax itself.
Who qualifies
The order sets out the categories of qualifying goods and the conditions attached to them. Whether your imports qualify is a matter of matching each entry's tariff classification, origin, and use against those conditions. That is not something you can eyeball from an invoice; it is determined line by line from the customs data already filed on your behalf. This is precisely what our audit does.
How relief is claimed
Going forward, remission is claimed at the time of accounting: a special authority code is entered on the Commercial Accounting Declaration, which tells CBSA the remission order applies so the surtax is not charged. Our special authority codes page explains the mechanics. If that field was left blank on your past entries, and it usually was, the surtax was charged in full.
Looking backward, qualifying entries that already paid surtax can be corrected and the money refunded as a credit or payment on your CBSA account. The limit is hard: claims must be made within two years of each importation.
The practical takeaway
A remission order is only worth something to you if someone checks your entries against it. Nobody at CBSA reviews your past imports on your behalf, and as our broker page explains, retrospective auditing is not part of a customs broker's normal workflow. The order has been in force since early 2026; the unclaimed relief sits where it has always sat, on the government's side of the ledger, until the window closes.
SOR/2026-34 links above to the official Justice Laws text. Whether specific goods qualify is a question of regulation applied to your actual entries; nothing here is legal advice.
Common questions
Does SOR/2026-34 refund surtax automatically?
No. Relief must be claimed: going forward with a special authority code on each CAD, and retroactively by correcting past entries within two years of each importation.
Is SOR/2026-34 the same as the US surtax remission order?
No. SOR/2026-34 covers steel derivative goods. The United States Surtax Remission Order (2025), SOR/2025-122, covers the earlier US-origin steel and aluminum surtax.