Canada, China Extend Canola, Seafood Tariff Relief to 2028

Canada and China have agreed to a two-year extension, to the end of 2028, of favourable market access for Canadian canola meal, peas, lobsters and crab, Global Affairs Canada announced on Wednesday (Nov 4).

The extension was agreed at a meeting of the Joint Economic and Trade Commission (JETC) in Beijing, co-led by Canada’s Minister of International Trade Maninder Sidhu and China’s Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao. The Canadian government said it was the first time the commission had met at ministerial level.

The access terms were first introduced under the Preliminary Joint Arrangement on Addressing Bilateral Economic and Trade Issues, announced during Prime Minister Carney’s visit to Beijing in January 2026. China also restored market access for Canadian beef that month, the statement said.

Steel and aluminium remission extended

On its side, Canada will extend to the end of 2028 the remission measures covered by the original arrangement for certain Chinese steel and aluminium products that are not made in Canada.

Sidhu said the arrangement had restored access for Canadian beef and lowered tariffs on canola seed, canola meal, peas, lobster and crab, supporting sectors that sustain more than 600,000 jobs in Canada.

Farmers want full access

Farm trade publication The Western Producer reported that the arrangement had been due to expire at the end of this year. The Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) welcomed the extension, saying it gives growers more certainty.

APAS president Bill Prybylski called the move positive but said “the tariffs have to be removed and full access regained.” The publication reported that tariffs on Canadian canola seed remain at 14.9 per cent and on canola oil at 100 per cent.

What’s next

Ottawa said it will continue talks with Beijing to find ways to meet its target of increasing Canadian exports to China by 50 per cent, which Sidhu said the government aims to reach by 2030.

According to the Canadian government, China is Canada’s second-largest single-country merchandise trading partner, with two-way merchandise trade of C$125.7 billion in 2025. Canadian exports to China were C$35.0 billion that year, against imports of C$90.6 billion. In the first half of this year, Canadian exports to China rose 31.4 per cent to C$21.5 billion.

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